Paleo Purple Cabbage Side Dish

Hi out there. I hope you all have recovered from eating like pigs during Thanksgiving. I am loving fall veggies at the moment. When you add the right spices and ingredients a veggie dish can really turn into something quite amazing. I used to work at a restaurant that served braised red cabbage. Although I didn’t care for the sweet taste of brown sugar, I did love the comforting warmth and texture of the cabbage after being slow-cooked. It’s very easy to forget about vegetables and reach for some fatty meat and easy to grab fruit or nuts but we must remember those nutrient-dense vegetables! They are important!!!

I hope you enjoy this savory, sugar-free dish!! Love you all!

 

Ingredients:

1/2 head of purple cabbage, thinly sliced

1/4 c balsamic vinegar

2 tbs coconut oil

3/4 c chicken broth

 

Directions

Sautee cabbage in coconut oil and balsamic until soft

reduce heat, add chicken broth

simmer on medium low for 5-10 minutes or until desired softness

 

 

Taco Tuesday: Ground Beef Tacos

I swear, Siete Tortillas should give me a job with how much free promotion I do for them. Since today is taco Tuesday, I am bringing you some super easy to make, yet hearty beef tacos. ENJoy!! I am still getting caught up from being in LA LA land for a week so I apologize for a short post.

 

Paleo Beef Tacos

Ingredients:

Ground beef seasoned with chipotle powder

coconut cream

avocado slices

medium salsa

siete tortillas

 

Assemble and eat.

Paleo Crepes

I’m wiped out. During my trip home on Thanksgiving, I ate grains and dairy….Now, I am irritable, tired and have a face full of acne, and all I can ask myself is, “Was it worth it?” My answer is no!! It was definitely not worth it. Then why do I continue to fall into the trap of throwing health out the window when I am outside the comforts of home? I have been looking within myself trying to figure out why I so easily reach for the cheese, milk, bread, whatever it is when i am home with family. I don’t have an answer, but i am sick and tired of this stupid pattern. UGH I’m feeling super low and frustrated today so here, a nice paleo crepe to perk me and you up.

you will need: Siete tortilla, chocolate, almond butter and agave. Smear ingredients on the tortilla and cook as you would a quesadilla. Rub your face in that ish and cry it out. Tomorrow is a new day and you will be stronger than you are today. I love you all and we are all fighting this battle together.

 

xoxoxoxo

Taco Tues: Tacos just like Chipotle

Hello world, I am t-minus 10 seconds to crazy right now. I am headed up north for Thanksgiving to be with my family as well as celebrate my engagement. My fiancé, kitty, puppy, and I will be making the 9 hour drive in just a couple hours….EEK I made this taco recipe a couple days ago because I knew this morning was going to be hectic, which brings me to todays topic-BE PREPARED. See, if I were to wait until today to make a recipe I know I would end up skipping out on it and today’s post because I was too busy. This is a slippery slope for me because 1 missed day becomes 2, which turns into 3, then 4 and so on. I don’t want to take that route, so instead I worked on extra recipes last week! When you prepare yourself, you can accomplish way more, not get overwhelmed, or give up. Typically, when I have stuff to do, I’ll procrastinate. Now that I’m adulting, I’ve started writing down daily schedules and time estimates of things I need to get done for the day. I schedule time for my morning routine, working out, blog posts, etc. To some of you this sounds like a nightmare, but for me it’s really been a dream come true. I no longer waste the day away sitting on my phone, or laying around. Instead I am busy to work conquering the day. AND IT FEELS AMAZING!!! How about you? What tools do you use to stay on track?

Back to taco land…this taco I made tastes just like Chipotle! AMAZING try it.

Ingredients:

• Taco Tuesday Siete Tortillas (the ones I always use)
• chicken breast
• 1 tsp coconut oil
• Trader Joes South African Smoke Seasoning
• 1/4 c chopped white onion
• red salsa
• Trader Joes Coconut Cream 
• lime wedges (to serve)

Directions:

Heat coconut oil in pan then add chicken breast and top with South African Smoke Seasoning. Cook on medium high for approx 8 minutes on each side or until temp. reaches 165.

Heat up your tortillas and layer ingredients in the following order: chicken, onion, salsa, cream

Serve with lime wedges and enjoy!

 

 

Chicken Wrap

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I’ve created a new addiction….oh my gosh soo good. I was in the mood for a sandwich but didn’t want to buy gluten free bread, because I can never really justify it. There’s hardly any nutrition in it. I was at Whole Foods when I spotted veggie wraps that were paleo friendly and full of fiber and nutrients. You can find these wraps on Thrive Market, as well as select Whole Foods in the bread isle. The wrap became sort of a hodgepodge of ingredients but in the end it tasted like a club sandwich with asian fusion. I also paired my wrap with some taro chips by Terra which can be purchased on Amazon. I used leftover chicken from my crockpot chicken, a mixture of veggies, sauce and even some Applegate Farms Turkey Bacon. I hope you all enjoy this simple, yet savory recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1 veggie wraps
• Primal Kitchen Mayo
• 1/2 avocado, sliced
• 2 slices of Applegate Farms Turkey Bacon
• small handful of shredded crockpot chicken
• 1 pickled beet, sliced
• 1 small carrot, shredded
• Coconut Aminos
• 1 tbs Tessemae’s Creamy Ranch

Directions:

Layer in the order the ingredients are listed.

Serve with Taro chips (optional) and enjoy!

Paleo Crockpot Chicken-EASY!

Before

After

After After = BROTH

This was probably one of the easiest dishes I have created in my Paleo journey. I bought a whole chicken at the grocery store, added a few ingredients, and by few I mean 3. I plopped it all in the crockpot, set it on low for 6 hours and when I came home from work I had the juiciest chicken waiting on me for dinner. After cleaning the chicken, I decided to keep the party going and put the carcass back in the crockpot to cook for 12 hours on low. Now I have a ton of tasty chicken and 5 mason jars of gut healing broth.

Paleo Rosemary and Garlic Chicken

Ingredients:

1 5lb chicken

1 medium onion in wedges

10 sprigs of rosemary

6 garlic cloves, halves

Instructions:

Stuff rosemary and garlic pieces underneath the skin of the chicken near the breasts, thighs, inside, and wherever you want there to be flavor.

Next, place the chicken with breast side down in your crockpot

Add onion wedges to the crockpot

Set your crockpot to low and cook for 6 hours

FOR BROTH

After you have cleaned carcass of majority of the meat, put it back in the crockpot and cook for another 12-16 hours.

Strain the broth from bones and put in mason jars.

 

Taco Tuesday

I wish I could relive these tacos over and over and over again. They were so perfect in every which way. I am obsessed with Siete Foods coconut and cassava tortillas because you really can’t tell they are paleo.  Even though it’s really been grossing me out lately, I finally gave in and pan-cooked some chicken breasts. I recommend using the Trader Joes South African Smoke Seasoning to flavor your chicken. These chicken tacos were delicious with the help of some extra tasty toppings.

Taco toppings from the bottom up (after chicken of course)

• chopped white onion
• spinach leaves
• red salsa
• Trader Joes Coconut Cream 

serve with lime wedge and enjoy right away! The tortillas may get soggy from the salsa, and nobody likes a soggy taco….oops.

If you’re feeling extra festive, you could always make my Paleo Chili Mango Margarita

Hearty Paleo Beef Stew

Herrrrooooooo! If any of you follow our Instagram account @paleo.pals, you saw a post of a crock pot meal I was working on. Well, today I am sharing the recipe with you. BUT FIRST! Man oh man! Things are starting to get crazy around here with my wedding planning and all that jazz. I have locked in a church and some vendors-which I am really excited about-but I am super confused on what to do for food. I don’t want to do a sit down dinner because I have never experienced an awesome sit down meal at a wedding. Sigh, you would think since we run a food blog the food planning would be a breeze…not so. Speaking of breeze….it’s starting to get breezy outside, Did I really just use that as a transition? Yep. I did. Breezy weather calls for crock pot meals. They are sooooo easy, and you can leave the house with the crock pot on and not worry about starting a fire. I tested out a paleo stew, which came out really tasty. However, I must admit….the Napa girl in me came out, and I added a little red wine to it at the end to add in a little extra flavor. I highly recommend tossing in about a half cup of red wine to add some pizzazz to your stew. YUMMMM. I hope you enjoy this easy recipe.

Cheers!

Hearty Paleo Beef Stew

Ingredients:

• 1 lb beef stew meat
• 1 onion chopped
• 3 carrots sliced
• 2 celery stalks sliced
• 2 white sweet potatoes cubed
• 1 cup mushrooms sliced
• 3 garlic cloves minced
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 cups beef bone broth
• 1 1/2 tbs coconut amigos
• 2 tbs coconut oil
• 1 tbs paprika
• salt and pepper to taste
• Optional—1/2 c pumpkin puree (I AM TRYING TO GET RID OF IT! So much puree left over lol)
• Optional—1/2 c red wine (at the end)

Directions:

Add all ingredients to crock pot, cook on low for 6 hours stirring occasionally.

 

 

 

PSL

Hi Paleo friends and Paleo interested!! Missing your pumpkin spice lattes? Well, you’re in luck because I’ve created a paleo-friendly version for you. That one pumpkin I had left over yielded a ton of puree so I have been able to play around with some pumpkin recipes. When in doubt, mix your puree with coconut cream from Trader Joes…my goodness the pairing is divine and creamy. Pump. puree, coconut cream and salt is amazing! It reminds me of the velveta cheese sauce my grandma used to make with her mac and cheese–no lie! The recipe is quite simple as long as you have puree on hand. Here’s how I made mine.

I hope you are all enjoying your Veteren’s Day and remembering those who have served over the years to keep our country safe and free. Today, we honor veterans of ALL wars. Thank you, thank you, thank you for your service. I challenge all of you to take a moment of silence today to reflect on what freedom really means to you, and to send gratitude for the brave men and women who have put their lives on the line for you.

Pumpkin Spice Latte

Ingredients:
2 cups fresh brewed coffee
3 tablespoons pumpkin puree
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons canned coconut cream (Trader Joes)
1/4 cup almond milk
1 teaspoon honey
1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/4 teaspoon vanilla

Directions-

1. The night before, set coconut cream in tupperware and put in fridge overnight so that the cream gets thick
2. Add coffee, puree, 1/4 cup coconut cream, almond milk, honey, pumpkin pie spice and vanilla to blender.
3. Blend until well incorporated and a little foamy.
4. Top with 2 tbs coconut cream and a sprinkle of pumpkin pie spice

 

 

All About Pumpkin

Well, Halloween is over, which means out with the spooky and in with the merry. But there’s one festive item from the holiday the Paleo Pals are not ready to throw out. We had a few pumpkins left over from Halloween, and I decided to take the challenge of making my own pumpkin puree.

Late one night I went to Whole Foods frantically searching for canned pumpkin. No luck. Then, DING! The light went off. I had plenty of pumpkin at home. I was going to make puree all by myself.

I used three different methods: boiling, baking and microwaving.

Method 1-Boiling

• Cut top and stem off of the pumpkin, scrape out the seeds (save to make pumpkin seeds), then cut the pumpkin into small 2 inch chunks
• toss the chunks in a pot of water that just barely covers the pumpkin
• boil for about 15-20 minutes or until fork tender
• set aside and let cool
• peel off the rind
• blend in a food processor or blender

Method 2-Baking

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• Cut top and stem off of the pumpkin, scrape out the seeds (save to make pumpkin seeds), then cut the pumpkin into small 2 inch chunks
• Place the chunks on a baking sheet
• Bake for 50 minutes or until fork tender
• set aside and let cool
• peel off the rind
• blend in a food processor or blender

Method 3- Microwave

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• Cut top and stem off of the pumpkin, scrape out the seeds (save to make pumpkin seeds), then cut the pumpkin into small 2 inch chunks
• Put chunks in a microwaveable dish filled with 1/2 inch of water
• Microwave uncovered for 5-6 minutes or until fork tender
• set aside and let cool
• peel off the rind
• blend in a food processor or blender

I never realized how easy making pumpkin puree was. I have been putting it in everything and even creating some yummy recipes, which I will be sharing with you guys in days to come. I am really loving a Paleo Pumpkin Spice Latte I created. I also put some of it in my dogs food dish so he has a healthy treat.

Another added bonus to having all of this pumpkin in my fridge are the health benefits.

• Mashed pumpkin only have 50 calories per cup but has 3 grams of fiber so you feel fuller longer. Pumpkin is very satiating.
• Pumpkin has a ton of vitamin A which increases vision.
• Helps you sleep better. Pumpkin contains tryptophan, which makes you feel sleepy. It also helps the body make serotonin that helps you feel good so that you can relax and unwind.

I am so happy to have added more pumpkin in my life. Last night I slept like a baby. It was wonderful. I hope you enjoy your pumpkin benefits too!!!