Chocolate Mousse

This chocolate mousse is rich, creamy, and vegan, plus it took only minutes to throw together. I subbed swerve sweetener for coconut sugar in this recipe. Thanks to Healy Eats Real for the original recipe:

Chia Chocolate Mousse:

Makes 2 servings
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3 tbsp powdered Swerve sweetener, confectioners
3/4 cup coconut milk 
 2 tbsp ground chia*

*to grind chia seeds blend in a small coffee grinder. This will make a powder that will thicken the mixture and create a jelly-like pudding texture.
1. Mix all ingredients together using a food processor or hand blender. I used a single serve cup on my blender.
2. Place in a bowl or in individual ramekins and put int the fridge to solidify for about 30 minutes-1 hour. I used these 1 cup Pyrex dishes.

<3 Baking Beauty

Slow Cooker Stuffed Green Peppers

From the Kitchen of The Veggie Vixen

Original recipe modified from
The Everything Paleolithic Diet
Slow Cooker Cookbook.
Purchase it on Amazon.com here.

1/4C almond flour
1T flax meal
1/4C coconut milk
1lb lean ground beef
1/2t lemon juice
1/2t fresh ground pepper
1 1/2t dried onion
1 egg
4 green bell peppers
1 can tomato sauce or diced tomatoes

Mix almond flour, flax, coconut milk, ground beef, lemon juice, ground pepper, dried onion, and egg together so ingredients are well spread throughout beef. Next, cut the top off of each bell pepper and clean the insides well. Stuff peppers equally until all meat mixture is used.



Stuffed peppers can now sit for up to three days in a well sealed container in the fridge or can be added to slow cooker at this point. I find they have a much better flavor when the ingredients are allowed to blend for at least 24 hours in the fridge.

When ready, add peppers to slow cooker and cover will tomato sauce or diced tomatoes. Cook on low for 6 hours.

I always use a slow cooker liner for easier clean up.

 

 

Paleo Pancakes

I found another amazing paleo pancake recipe on Pinterest. This one is super easy and only has 4 ingredients. Thank you, A Spicy Perspective.

Paleo Pancakes

Ingredients:

• 3 large ripe bananas
• 6 eggs
• 1/3 cup coconut flour
• 2 pinches salt
• (I added 1 T grass fed beef gelatin for its health benefits)
• Coconut oil for frying (I used a silicone brush to get a thin layer of coconut oil in the hot pan)

Directions:

1. Preheat a non-stick skillet over medium heat. (You could preheat more than one to speed up the cooking process.) Place the bananas, eggs, coconut flour and 2 pinches of salt in the blender. Puree until smooth. The batter should be thick, but pourable. If it seems thin, add 1-2 more tablespoons of coconut flour.



Mine came out pretty dark, but not burnt. They taste amazing!

2. Brush the skillet lightly with coconut oil. Pour in a 3 inch circle of batter. Shake the skillet gently to spread the batter into a 4 inch circle. Cook for 2-4 minutes until the bottom is golden-brown and the edges are firm. Flip gently with a flexible spatula, and continue cooking another 2-4 minutes. If the bottoms turn dark, lower the heat a little.

<3 Baking Beauty

Coconut Flour Pancakes with Gelatin

I topped them with sugar free peach preserves.

I just tried this recipe for coconut flour pancakes with gelatin for the second time this morning and it is delicious and fairly easy! Gelatin is a super food with many health benefits. The addition of gelatin in this recipe is not at all obvious, but the health benefits are there.

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup coconut flour
• 1 Tbs. grassfed gelatin
• 4 pastured eggs, at room temperature
• 1 heaping tbs. softened butter or coconut oil (the second time I made these I cut this nearly in half, since they were a bit too oily for my taste the first time)
• 1/2 cup coconut milk
• Coconut oil or ghee, for the pan

Instructions

1. Start heating a seasoned cast iron skillet or enamel skillet over medium heat. Whisk together the coconut flour and gelatin. Stir in the eggs, beating until a smooth paste forms.
2. Stir in the butter/coconut oil until combined, then add the coconut milk.
3. Cook the pancakes in the hot skillet with coconut oil/ghee. Cook until the edges and center starts to look opaque, then flip. Smaller pancakes will be easier to flip.
4. Makes about 2 servings (12 small pancakes).

Slow Cooker Curried Chicken

From the Kitchen of The Veggie Vixen

Original recipe modified from
The Everything Paleolithic Diet
Slow Cooker Cookbook.
Purchase it on Amazon.com here.

1 small onion, diced
2-4 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2T curry powder
1C coconut milk
1/4C water
4 chicken leg & thigh quarters
red pepper flakes to taste

Mix together onion, garlic, curry powder, red pepper, coconut milk, and water. Next, layer chicken quarters into a lines slow cooker. Pour curry mixture on top of chicken. Cook on low for 6-8 hours.



Chicken will be most and falling right off the bone.

 

Leftovers for lunch tomorrow!
Curry chicken served with:
pigeon peas and coconut rice
shredded cabbage and carrots cooked in broth from the curry chicken

Cave Crave Pizza

My daughter (13) was inspired by her new cookbook, Paleo Girl by Leslie Klenke.

The book has this recipe for pizza crust and my daughter thought it would be good with buffalo chicken and buffalo cauliflower on top. We began by preparing the chicken and cauliflower using the buffalo sauce from Veggie Vixen's buffalo cauliflower recipe:

I recommend cooking the cauliflower first as it will lose a lot of water and could make the pizza soggy if you start with raw. I chopped the cauliflower into very small pieces.

  I chopped the chicken into very small pieces, also, and tossed it in the buffalo sauce and sautéed it. Then we preheated the oven to 425 and prepared the crust:

Makes 8 servings- 40 minutes

2 cups almond flour

1 cup arrowroot flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 tsp oregano

3 eggs

1/2 cup almond milk(I used whole milk)

   Combine dry ingredients, then add wet ingredients. Spread with spatula on pizza sheet.  I recommend lining your pan with parchment paper since my crust stuck even after greasing it. After baking for 10 minutes we added sauce, cheese, and chicken and baked it for 10 more minutes.

The crust was delicious, soft, and able to be picked up to eat. I really like this book for teenage girls who are considering living a paleo lifestyle. I bought it on Amazon for around $16.
<3 Baking Beauty

Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore

From the Kitchen of The Veggie Vixen

Tutorial available on our YouTube Chanel here.

4 chicken leg & thigh quarters
1C onion, diced
1C red bell pepper, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 cans stewed tomatoes
1T Italian seasoning
1t salt
1/2t fresh ground pepper
1 bay leaf
3T capers
olive oil

Sauté onion, bell pepper, and garlic in olive oil over medium high heat until onions are translucent then remove from skillet. Mix sautéed onion, bell pepper and garlic with tomatoes, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper.  Brown chicken quarters until skin starts to become brown and crispy then remove from skillet and add to crock pot. Top with veggie mixture and bury the bay leaf in with it all. Cook on low for 8 hours or high for 4 hours. About 15 minutes before serving add in capers.

Make ahead tips for a busy week: I follow all of the steps above except instead of adding the ingredients right into my crockpot I use a crockpot liner and either a glass or plastic storage dish to keep my slow cooker dinner ready for a busy morning. Now all I have to do is pick up the liner and drop it into my crockpot and dinner is ready to go. I have found that I can do this for a few meals on a Sunday and then refrigerate them for up to 3 days until I am ready to cook them. The liner makes clean up really convenient too!

Side Dish Ideas

Spaghetti squash and eggplant
roasting in my counter top oven.

Roasted Egg Plant
Cut a medium sized egg plant in half and roast in a preheated 350 degree oven for 45 minutes or until tender. Dice and sauté in a non stick skillet over medium high heat with veggies and juices from Chicken Cacciatore.

My eggplant is roasted and diced
for a quick and easy finish another day
 this week.

Roasted Spaghetti Squash
Follow this link here for step by step instructions on roasting spaghetti squash.

A Week of Healthy Dinner's for August 11-15

From the Kitchen of The Veggie Vixen

Next week is back-to-school for this busy teacher and since I know I'll have to hit the ground running in order to get ready for my students and still keep up with my mommy duties I am already thinking about a dinner menu for the week. I try to plan ahead so that I can take advantage of sales and feed my family well during my work week and I find that Sunday is a good day for me to prep dinners for the week. Since I am the only Paleo eater in the house not every night features Paleo dinners. My goal is to keep it healthy and keep most everyone in the house happy - that's a challenge!

Monday
No Crust Shepherd's Pie (ok it's really cottage pie but I still call it Shepherd's)

You can use Baking Beauty's recipe here or follow my variation. It's very similar! I make this a day or two ahead of time so on the day we have it for dinner it's quick.

Pie Filling

1lb lean ground beef
1lb green beans, fresh or frozen
1 bell pepper, red or green, diced
1 medium onion, diced
salt, fresh ground pepper, minced garlic to taste
olive oil
your favorite block cheese, shredded
mashed cauliflower

Sauté onion and bell pepper in olive oil until tender and onions become translucent, set aside. Brown ground beef over medium high heat adding garlic, pepper, and minced garlic to taste. Mix beef, onions, and peppers in the bottom of a glass casserole dish. Next, sauté green beans until they become tender. Add green beans as the next layer in your casserole dish. Sprinkle an even layer of your shredded cheese then top with mashed cauliflower. Finish off by sprinkling paprika over top and either refrigerate for up to 3 days. Reheat by baking in a preheated 350 degree oven for up to 45 minutes or until heated through.

Mashed Cauliflower
1 medium head cauliflower, cut into florets and steamed until tender
1-2 cloves minced garlic
1/4C your favorite block cheese, shredded
1T cream cheese
1/2t salt
1/8t fresh ground black pepper

Pulse steamed cauliflower florets in food processor until smooth adding in shredded cheese, cream cheese, garlic, salt, and pepper as you go.

Tuesday
Unstuffed Cabbage Rolls

This is another one you can make ahead or even do in your crockpot*.

1lb lean ground beef
1 medium head of cabbage, shredded
1C chicken broth
1 can tomato sauce
1 medium onion, diced
3-5 cloves garlic, minced
1T each garlic powder, onion powder, and red pepper flakes
2T dill
olive oil

Sauté onion and garlic in olive oil until tender and translucent, add ground beef and cook through. Combine all ingredients in glass baking dish, mix well. Refrigerate for up to 3 days. When you're ready to have this for dinner bake it in a preheated 350 degree oven for 45 minutes or until cabbage is tender.

*If using your crockpot instead of baking, follow all of the directions above then cook on low for up to 8 hours or on high for up to 4 hours. I recommend using a crockpot liner. They make cleanup very quick and easy!

Wednesday
Indian Curry Chicken with basmati rice and spiced eggplant.

If you're strictly Paleo skip the rice or substitute cauliflower rice as described here. Also, read  your curry sauce ingredients carefully as it many contain additives that you are working to avoid. I love both of these pictured below and have tried other curry sauces from these brands. I've never been let down! I can find them at Super Target or World Market.

Left: Butter Chicken sauce with no unnecessary additives.
Right: Tikka Masala Curry sauce - it has all kinds of additives but sometimes I give in because I love it soooo much!

Curry Chicken
3-4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cubed
1 jar curry sauce of your choice

Saute chicken cubes in olive oil until browned and cooked through. Add curry sauce and simmer as instructed on the jar. Optional: serve over basmati rice.

Photo and recipe by allrecipes.com

Spiced Eggplant
1 medium eggplant
2/3 cup butter
1 medium onion, diced
4 large tomatoes, diced
4t crushed coriander seed

Half eggplant and roast in preheated 325 degree oven for 20 minutes, or until tender. Let cool until the eggplant can be easily handled. Remove flesh from peel and mash. Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat; sauté onions until translucent. Stir in tomatoes and eggplant; cook, stirring, until liquid is evaporated. Remove from heat and sprinkle with coriander. Serve or refrigerate for up to 3 days until it's curry night.

Thursday
Zesty Chicken with roasted zucchini and yellow squash.

Zesty Chicken
1lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 egg
1/4t water
1/4C almond flour
1/4C flax meal
1t Italian seasoning
1/4t cayenne pepper
1/4t paprika
1/2t garlic powder
1/4t red pepper flakes
1/4t salt
1/4t chili powder

Whisk egg with water. Mix all spices, almond flour, and flax meal well (you can do this a few days in advance). Coat chicken with egg mixture then dredge through flour mixture. Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 40 minutes or until juices run clear. Serve with your favorite veggies!

Roasted Veggies
Our family eats at least one zucchini and one yellow squash per person.
garlic powder, salt, fresh ground pepper
olive oil

Wash veggies thoroughly and cut them lengthwise. Coat each veggie well with olive oil - this is where having a Misto is handy. Sprinkle an even coat of garlic powder on each one then add salt and pepper to taste. Roast on a parchment lined cookie sheet in a preheated 350 degree oven for 40 minutes or until tender. (I throw these in the oven at the same time as my zesty chicken and everything is done together.)

Friday
Lettuce wrapped burgers with oven roasted sweet potato fries and roasted buffalo style cauliflower.

Simple Lettuce Wrapped Burgers
1lb lean ground beef
garlic powder, salt, and fresh ground pepper to taste
one head of romaine lettuce
Homemade Ketchup
Quick and Easy Honey Mustard
all your favorite burger toppings (I like cheese, banana pepper rings, and jalapeño slices)

Form ground beef into 4 patties and season with spices. I cook mine on my George Foreman grill (lined with foil for quick cleanup). Wrap each burger in 4-6 lettuce leaves adding your burger toppings before closing in the burger.


Follow the link here for roasted buffalo style cauliflower*.

Follow the link here for oven roasted sweet potato fries*.

Photo by Everything Tasty Kitchen.

*I roast my cauliflower and sweet potato fries side by side in a 400 degree oven for about 40 minutes. I also do not flip my fries during cooking. I just close up the oven and check back from time to time to make sure everything is getting a nice golden brown. EASY!

Quick and Easy Honey Mustard

From the Kitchen of The Veggie Vixen

1/2 cup yellow mustard (I use French's yellow - no additives!)
1/2 local honey (always local - great allergy benefits!)
1t garlic powder
1t paprika

salt & fresh ground pepper to taste

Mix them all together and enjoy!

 

This honey mustard is great on a bunless cheese burger and pretty much everything else!

 

Taco Night

From the Kitchen of The Veggie Vixen

Taco Seasoning
1T chili powder
2t onion powder
1t ground cumin
1t garlic powder
1t paprika
1t red pepper flakes

Tacos
lean ground beef
1/2C water
shells of your choice (tonight I'm using cabbage leaves, Romaine works very well too)
your favorite toppings (mine will include sour cream, shredded cheese, Frank's Red Hot sauce and Herdez salsa)

Mix spices well.

 

Brown lean ground beef in sauté pan.

Add one (above) recipe for taco seasoning per one pound of lean ground beef to pan. Add 1/2C water and simmer 15-20 minutes or until liquid is mostly cooked out of taco meat.

 
Veggies On the side

Roasted Fajita Style Cauliflower
1 medium head cauliflower, cut into florets
1T garlic, minced
Badia Fajita seasoning to taste
olive oil

Toss florets with enough olive oil and Badia Fajita season to coat them well. Add garlic and mix well. Roast in preheated 400 degree oven for one hour or until tender and golden brown.

 

Squash and Zucchini with a Mexican Flare
1 medium zucchini, sliced
1 medium yellow squash, sliced
1T garlic, minced
1/4-1/3C Herdez Salsa
Badia Fajita Seasoning to taste
olive oil

Sauté ingredients in large pan over medium high heat or roast in the oven alongside with cauliflower.

Zucchini and squash shown oven roasted.

Cabbage leaf shelled tacos topped with jack cheese and sour cream.

Banana Nut Muffins

From the Kitchen of The Veggie Vixen

Special thanks to Paleo Grubs for their original recipe.

4 very ripe bananas, mashed
4 eggs
1/2C raw almond butter
2t coconut oil, melted
1t vanilla extract
1/2C coconut flour
2t cinnamon
1/2t nutmeg
1t baking powder
1t baking soda
1/4t salt
1/2-1C chopped walnuts

With a hand mixer, in a large bowl, blend bananas, eggs, almond butter, coconut oil, and vanilla.

 

Add in coconut flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

 

Fill greased silicone muffin cups about 2/3 full. Top each muffin with a generous pinch of chopped walnuts. Bake in 350 degree preheated oven for 20-25 minutes. Serve with Triple Goddess Butter to make them even more delicious!

Triple Goddess Butter

From the Kitchen of The Veggie Vixen

 

1lb unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2C plus 2T local raw honey
4T coarse seal salt

Blend well with hand mixer or stand mixer. Serve on EVERYTHING!

 

Special thanks to the New York Times for their salted honey butter recipe.

 

Strawberry Paleo Muffins

From the Kitchen of The Veggie Vixen

Photo and recipe credit cook eat paleo.

2C almond flour
1/2t baking soda
1/8t salt
3 eggs
1/4C local honey
1T butter, melted
1T coconut oil
1T fresh squeezed lemon juice
1t vanilla extract
1C chopped fresh strawberries

Combine dry ingredients in large bowl. Combine wet ingredients in a medium bowl.

 

Stir wet ingredients into dry then gently fold in strawberries.

Fill ,greased, silicone baking cups 3/4 full. Bake for 20-25 minutes in a preheated 325 degree oven.

Bacon Egg and Cheese Breakfast Muffins

From the Kitchen of the Veggie Vixen

Special thanks to RealFoodOutlaws for the original recipe here.

6 eggs
8-12 pieces bacon, cooked and crumbled (I used 8 Hormel Black Label)
1/3C coconut flour, slightly rounded
1C favorite cheese, shredded or diced (I combined munster and jack)
1/2t smoked paprika
1/4t salt
1/2t baking powder
4T fat (I used 2T bacon grease and 2T melted butter)
1/2t dried parsley
1T garlic, minced
1T flax meal, slightly rounded
fresh ground pepper to taste

Mix eggs, coconut flour, paprika, pepper, salt, and baking powder together in a bowl and let sit aside for a few minutes. It should be thick like cookie batter.

Shown here with all ingredients well mixed together.

Add in crumbled bacon, fat, cheese, garlic, and flax meal.

Fill each muffin cup about 3/4 full. Bake for 15-20 minutes at 400 degrees until the egg has puffed up and they are golden brown. Makes 12 muffins.

On their way into the oven!

Just less than 20 minutes later.