Chocolate Chip Cookies- Paleo, Vegan, GF

Ever come home and just crave something comforting?  I had one of those days, so the only thing to fill that need was chocolate chip cookies!  I never really cared for chocolate chip cookies as a kid.  I always thought the chocolate got in the way of the cookie.  Now that I am older, I like a good chocolate chip cookie.  I still have that adversity to too much chocolate, so I use these awesome GF, Dairy Free mini chocolate chips.

I will put a disclaimer on this recipe.  This is my second attempt at Paleo Chocolate Chip Cookies.  They are still missing a little something... I think it might be some kind of protein.  So if you decide to try these with an egg or flax meal and water, please let me know how they turn out!  Thank you :-)


Chocolate Chip Cookies - Paleo, Vegan, GF

Ingredients:

1 C Almond Meal  (I use the Trader Joe's Brand, it's the best price)
1 Tbls Coconut Flour  (I could only find this at Whole Foods)
1/4 C Agave Syrup
1/4 Tsp Baking Soda
1/4 Tsp Salt
1 Tsp Vanilla
1 1/2 Tbls Coconut Oil  (I measure it out, then melt it)
1/4 C Mini Chocolate Chips

Preheat Oven 325, line cookie sheet with parchment paper.

Mix the wet ingredients together, add the egg or flax here.  Mix the dry ingredients in a medium sized bowl.  Now add the wet ingredients to the dry, stir until mixed.  Add your chocolate chips, if you like a lot of chocolate chips, I would add more.  Spoon cookie dough onto parchment paper.  This recipe makes about 10-12 cookies.  If you want cookies for the next day, I would double the recipe.  Bake for 8-11 minutes.

Grab a glass of almond milk, a warm cookie, your favorite sweatshirt and enjoy!

Paleo "Tortilla" Soup

After my surgery, I have taken it easy and not cooked a lot.  I'm starting to miss it greatly at this point, but I have to wait a little longer to heal up.  Thankfully I have some recipes that I haven't added yet.

We get these fantastic weekly produce deliveries from Full Circle.  They are a farm to table local organic produce company.  These deliveries are incredibly reasonably priced for organic produce, and really fun.  Every week you get different items.  It's kinda like a weekly challenge to learn how to use the different seasonal veggies.  This week we got parsnips.  The only way I could remember having them was roasted with chicken, which is not something my partner would like.  We eat a lot of chicken, so I am constantly trying to mix up how I prepare it.  I really was craving mexican food, which can be hard on Paleo, so I wracked my brain for something like mexican but could incorporate parsnips.  Bazinga! I thought of tortilla  soup!  Tortilla chips are not exactly Paleo but parsnip chips are.  Here is the recipe I came up with....


Paleo "Tortilla" Soup

Ingredients:

3-4 Cooked Chicken Breasts
24 oz (3 C) Chicken Broth
10 oz  Enchilada Sauce
4 oz    Roasted Green Chilis
28 oz  Diced Tomatoes
1 Tbl Olive Oil
4 Cloves of Garlic
1/2 Diced Onion
2 Tsp Cumin

Toppings:

1 Avocado Diced
Grated Almond Pepper Jack Cheese
Sweet Potato & Parsnip Chips


Cook 3-4 chicken breasts, I just threw mine on the George Forman, then diced it up.  In a soup pot, add oil, onion and garlic.  Cook over medium high heat until onions and garlic are tender.  Add the rest of the soup ingredients.  Bring to a gentle boil, then cover and simmer for about 15 minutes.

While it simmers, make your Sweet Potato and Parsnip Chips.  Preheat oven to 425.

Peel and slice sweet potatoes and parsnips.  If you have a mandolin this would be the perfect time to use it, I didn't so I tried to make as even as possible slices.  Put the slices in a bowl, drizzle with olive oil and dash with salt.  Toss so the slices are covered, then lay out evenly on cookie sheet.  Bake 10 minutes.  Pull out of the over, flip chips and cook for another 5-10 minutes.  I found that the smaller chips cooked quite a bit faster, so I pulled those out and just continued cooking the larger ones.

Once your chips are done, and your soup has simmered, you are ready to serve your soup.  Ladle soup into a bowl, top with diced avocado, pepper jack, and your crispy sweet potato and parsnips chips.  

Zucchini Turkey Lasagna -Paleo

I'm currently laid up after my 4th knee surgery.  I was really really lucky to have so many friends come by today.  My partner is being amazing and taking good care of me too!  He has had to cook dinner the last few nights.  So I gave him a recipe that was super easy, very yummy and used up some of the zucchini we had in the fridge.  It turned out great!  Proud of my man for making something so great.


Zucchini Turkey Lasagna

Ingredients:

3 Zucchinis
1 Lb Ground turkey
1 Tsp Onion powder
2 Tsp Worcestershire Sauce
2 C Grated almond mozzarella cheese
4 C Marinera sauce (Usually I make my own but to make it easy I used some from Trader Joe's)
1 Tbls Olive Oil


Preheat over 375

Brown ground turkey in pan with onion powder and worcestershire sauce.  While it browns, grease 13x9 glass baking pan with olive oil.  Slice zucchini thin and evenly, I don't have a mandolin or I would have used it in this situation.  Cover the bottom of the baking pan with the sliced zucchini.  This is your first layer so don't use all of the zucchini yet.  Next add half of the browned meat, layer half of the mariner sauce and half of the cheese.  Repeat layer, zucchini, meat, mariner, and cheese.  Cover with foil and bake for 25-35 minutes.

Remove from the oven and cool.  Then cut and enjoy!!

Cinnamon Roll Bread Pudding

When I first moved to Tacoma, I had the privilege of working at a fantastic restaurant named Maxwells.  Not only did I love working here more then I have anywhere else, I was constantly spoiled with incredible food.  The head Chef while I was there was Matt Colony, who is so incredibly talented and inventive.  He had created a brioche cinnamon roll bread pudding.  This was a staple on our menu and a staple in my weekly diet.  Ever since then, I still crave that gooey delicious sweet treat.

Thursday night I could not sleep, because I laid awake in bed trying to figure out how I was going to make a Paleo version of this amazing dessert.  Here is what I came up with, and I must saying it might not be Matt's but it is very yummy!



Paleo Cinnamon Roll Bread Pudding

4 Eggs
1 Can Coconut Milk
2 Tsp Vanilla
1/2 C Agave
1/2 Tsp Cinnamon
1 Recipe of Paleo Cinnamon Rolls cut and dried over night


Preheat over 375

Grease a baking pan ( I used a glass 9x9) with coconut oil.  Place Cinnamon Roll chunks in the pan evenly.  I really prefer my bread to absorb as much as possible, so it is important to let it stay out overnight to get kinda stale.  If you are in a rush, like I was last night, I put it in the over to broil and get toasty.  In a bowl, beat the eggs.  Then add the rest of the wet ingredients and cinnamon.  Whisk together until well mixed.  Pour mixture over bread in pan and let soak 10 minutes.

Cover with foil and bake 30-45 minutes.  You want the egg mixture to not be wet in the middle and kind of a matte look to the pudding.  Let it cool, and enjoy!!  Some people like whipped cream or carmel sauce on their bread pudding but we enjoyed it as is :-)

Paleo "Cinnamon Roll"

This may not look like a normal cinnamon roll but it tastes like one!!!  It's easy and beyond quick for when you are craving that classic treat.


Paleo "Cinnamon Roll"

Ingredients:

3 Eggs
1/2 Coconut Flour
1 tsp Cinnamon
1/4 Tsp Baking Soda
1 Tsp Vanilla

Filling:

1 Tbls Melted Coconut Oil
2 Tbls Honey
1 Tbls Agave
2-3 Tsp Cinnamon
1/2 Tsp Vanilla

Glaze:

1 Tbls Melted Coconut oil
1/4 C Agave
1 1/2 Tsp Vanilla

Preheat oven to 375, line a cookie sheet with parchment paper (which is my best baking friend).

Lightly beat eggs in a medium sized bowl, then add coconut milk and whisk together.  Add coconut flour, baking soda and the rest of the ingredients.  Mix together into an even batter.  Spread evenly onto parchment lined baking sheet.  Bake for 12 minutes. Whisk all of the filling ingredients together, then spread on dough.  Bake another 4-7 minutes until dough is golden brown and the filling is all bubbly.  Cool on rack.  While cooling mix the glaze ingredients together.  Cut dough, and stack a few pieces high.  Drizzle glaze over the top and enjoy!!

Pizza - Vegan & Paleo

Mmmmm... This recipe completely hit the spot.

I had to run to our fantastic local dog store (Lucky Dog Outfitters) to grab our pup kibble on my way home tonight.  The store is located right between a thai restaurant and pizza store, which just happen to be my two favorite cuisines.  As I ran from my car into the store, I was bombarded by the smell of baking pizza.  Instantly I was hungry and craving pizza.  Debating whether or not I should give in and just grab a small pie, the remembrance of stomach aches and headaches that come with eating dairy and gluten hit me.

I have had Paleo Pizza on my list of recipes to try since I started Paleo, now was as good a night as any.  I was really fortunate my late night work obligation was postponed, which gave me a night at home to cook something yummy.  Driving to the grocery store, I racked my brain, going over which Paleo staples I had at home and realized all I needed was almond cheese.  We are in the process of buying a house, or trying to buy a house, so we are really trying to stay on budget.  Trying to make sure I use the stables I have is something new I am trying to help cut down on monthly grocery costs.

Here is what beyond delicious Paleo, Vegan, Gluten Free recipe I made.


Pizza - Vegan & Paleo

Pizza Sauce

Ingredients:

8 oz Can of Tomato Sauce

6 oz Can of Tomato Paste

3 Cloves Garlic Minced (I love garlic so I added 5 but I don't want to over garlic anyone)

1 Tbls Olive Oil

1 Tsp Basil

1 Tsp Onion Powder (My partner won't eat real onions if he can see them, so if you are able to use diced onions use 1/2 C)

1 1/2 Tsp Italian Seasoning

1/2 Tsp Honey

In a saucepan, heat oil, then add garlic and, if you are using them, onions.  Cook until transparent.  Add all of the other ingredients to the saucepan.  Heat over medium-high heat until it starts to bubble.  Reduce heat and cover.  I let this simmer while I made the crust.

Ingredients:

Pizza Crust

Ingredients:

3 Eggs
1 C Coconut Milk (Full Fat)
1/2 C Coconut Flour  ( I found the best price for this at Whole Foods)
1/4 Tsp Baking Soda
2 Cloves Garlic Minced

Preheat oven to 375, line a cookie sheet with parchment paper (which is my best baking friend).

Lightly beat eggs in a medium sized bowl, then add coconut milk and whisk together.  Add coconut flour, baking soda and garlic.  Mix together into an even batter.  Spread evenly onto parchment lined baking sheet.  I decided to make a square instead of a circle so I could eat half now an half later.  Bake for 17-20 minutes until golden brown.  This dough rises quite a bit, so if you like a thinner crust, spread it out thinner and cook less time.  Carefully flip the crust over once it is done.


Once the crust and sauce is ready....

Take your yummy Paleo Pizza Crust, spread your sauce on it, then top with Almond Mozzarella cheese and which ever other Paleo topping you like.  I used fresh pineapple on mine and my partner had sausage, basil and red peppers!

Paleo Meatloaf Muffins with Sweet Potato Fries

After a long day at work, and the impending long work week, I needed some comfort food.  I also wanted to make something that I could have for a few days because I will not have time to cook dinner the next few nights.  So what is my easy, quick, comfort food?  It is meatloaf and fries...mmmm.  It makes me happy just thinking about it.  The best thing about these recipes is that they are Paleo and I think they taste better then a non-Paleo version.


I do not eat beef or pork.  Which leaves me poultry and seafood.  For all of the recipes that would usually use ground beef, I use ground turkey.  The downside of ground turkey, it can be expensive.  After price shopping around Tacoma, I finally found ground turkey for under $3.00 a pound!!  WinCo had a sale on it and we stocked up!  I used to be a grocery store snob, I can admit that was a fault of mine.  But when we started saving for our house, I had to stop being a snob and start price shopping.  I was so surprised the first time I went to WinCo by how much money I had saved shopping there.  Be careful there though, a lot of their meat has additives.  The great side of Paleo is you get to read more, especially food labels :-)

Mini Meatloaf “Muffins”

Ingredients:

Paleo “Ketchup”

½ can tomato paste (No Salt Added if available)


2 tsp of Worchester Sauce

Fresh ground  black pepper

Meatloaf

1 lb ground turkey

½ of a green bell pepper finely diced


½ of a red bell pepper finely diced


½ of a white onion finely diced
(or if you have someone who won’t eat onions use ½ tsp onion powder)

3 Celery stalks diced

½ shredded carrot


1 egg

½ can of tomato paste (No Salt Added if available)


1 tsp garlic diced

1 teaspoon black pepper


2 tsp of Worchester Sauce

Instructions:
   Preheat oven to 375 degrees

Mix all ingredients together in a big mixing bowl.
 I use a ¼ C measuring cup as a scoop to make sure my muffins are even, to dish the meat mixture into  lightly oiled muffin tins.  Top meatloaf with the Paleo “Ketchup”.  Bake for 15-20 minutes. 

Let them cool a few minutes and enjoy!

Sweet Potato Fries

Ingredients:


1-2 Large Sweet Potatoes
2 tbls Olive Oil
1 tsp  Sea Salt

Instructions:
   Preheat oven to 425 degrees


Peel the Sweet Potatoes, and cut into as even a fry like shape as possible.  Mine turned out a with a few different sizes but it worked great for having some who like soft fries and some who like crunchy fries.  Lay out cut sweet potatoes on a cookie sheet.  Drizzle with olive oil and salt, toss on the pan so they are covered with the oil and the pan gets greased at the same time.  Bake for 10 minutes.  Pull out and turn fries.  Bake for another 8-15 minutes.  There is a big gap because it depends on how thick you have cut your fries.


Pull out of the oven, grab some of your Paleo "Ketchup" and enjoy!

Paleo Foods

Tonight we lucked out and had some friends over for dinner.  As many who are living the Paleo Lifestyle soon learn, a lot of people don't understand all that is involved.  My buddy who likes to poke fun at Paleo, saw my food list I had made on my fridge door.  He started reading off the random things we can eat.  As we all laughed about the silly combinations we can make up, it made me think about how much this list helped me when I first started.  So I thought I would share it!

The food pyramid shows how a Paleo lifestyle balances the amounts of different foods.  The list below is a quick laundry list of what you can eat...there are a lot of things missing.  It has really helped me plan out meals.

Hope this helps you!

MEAT


Branzini    Chuck Steak     Halibut
    
Red snapper



Salmon     Scallops          Swordfish
    Abalone

Bass
     Bluefish     Chicken     Clams

Cod     Crab     Crayfish     Eggs

Extra Lean Hamburger     Flank Steak

Game Hen     Goat meat     Herring    Lean veal

Lobster     London broil     Mussels
     Oysters

Pork     Rabbit meat     Rockfish     Sardines

Shark     Shellfish     Shrimp     Striped bass

Tilapia 
Trout
     Top Sirloin Steak
     Tuna
    Turkey breast




FRUITS

Avocado
    Apple     Apricot     Banana

Blackberries     Blueberries     Boysenberry     Cantaloupe

Carambola     Cherimoya     Cherries     Cranberries

Guava     Gooseberries     Grapefruit      Grapes

Honeydew     Kiwi     Lemon      Lime


Lychee     Mango     Nectarine     Orange

Papaya     Passion Fruit     Peaches     Pears

Persimmon     Pineapple    Plums     Pomegranate

Raspberries    Rhubarb     Tangerine     Watermelon

VEGETABLES

Artichoke     Asparagus     Peppers     Parsley

Seaweed    Beet     Broccoli    Brussels Sprouts

Cabbage    Carrots
    Cauliflower    Celery

Collards
    Cucumber     Dandelion     Eggplant

Endive     Green Onions      Kale     Lettuce

Mushrooms    Mustard Greens     Parsnip
      Pumpkin


Purslane
     Radish      Rutabaga
     Spinach

Squash (all kinds)     Swiss Chard     Tomatillos      Tomato

Turnip Greens      Sweet Potatoes     Leeks

NUTS AND SEEDS


Almonds     Brazil Nuts     Cashews      Chestnuts

Hazelnuts      Macadamia Nuts      Pecans      Pine Nuts

Pistachios (unsalted)     Pumpkin Seeds     Sesame Seeds

Sunflower Seeds    Walnuts

Paleo Brownies

Today is Ash Wednesday and I keep reading about people looking for something to give up for Lent.  What are you giving up for Lent? What about going Paleo for Lent?  It would be giving up something and doing something great for your body.  I think that I if I came home today and told my partner that I was going to give up something for lent this year, he may have a little problem with it.  Because if I give up something that would mean he would have to too.  I’m not one who can have something in the house and not eat it.  So all of the tempting yummy foods I see have to stay at the grocery store.

 The first time I made this recipe below it was to bring into work for a side by side Paleo vs Non-Paleo brownie treat.  I had tried not to buy cocoa powder before because I knew once I did, the chocolate treats would start coming.  I’m very proud of myself, I have not resorted to mixing the cocoa powder with everything.  We are still fairly new on the Paleo lifestyle and my chocolate cravings are not always the easiest to manage.

Paleo Brownies

½ cup unsweetened applesauce  or 1/4 melted coconut oil (I use oil)

½ cup high-quality cocoa powder

2 Eggs

1/2 cup light agave nectar

1/2 cup raw honey

1 cup almond meal or flour 

½ teaspoon fine sea salt

¼ teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoons vanilla extract (or 1 teaspoon vanilla plus 2 teaspoons peppermint extract)

Optional: ½ cup chopped macadamia nuts or chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In one mixing bowl, whisk the eggs until lighter in color. Add the other liquid ingredients to this bowl. In a second mixing bowl, mix together all the dry ingredients. Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients. Mix.  If you are adding nuts or chocolate chips, mix them in at the end. Pour into lined baking pan. Pick up the pan and drop forcefully on the counter or table 3-4 times. This gets the air bubbles out of the batter.  Bake in the center of a preheated 350 degree F oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the brownies are set. I use a muffin tin so they are easier to pack for lunches, bake 8-12 minutes.