Chorizo Kale Skillet Hash (Paleo)

This is such a comfort meal to me. I love having this for breakfast, lunch, or dinner!! 

To feed 4 people, you need:

3 sweet potatoes 

1 lb of chorizo (or pork sausage if you can't find chorizo) 

Fresh kale, washed and chopped finely

4 eggs 

coconut oil 

cast iron skillet 

1. Chop sweet potatoes into small pieces and cook in a medium skillet in coconut oil or olive oil until tender. (I usually add a small amount of beef broth and cover the skillet at the end-- to ensure the sweet potatoes soften up!) Season with a small amount of salt. 

2. Next, cook the chorizo in a cast iron skillet if you have it! 

3. When the chorizo is almost done, add kale and stir until wilted. Add sweet potatoes back in. 

4. Make 4 holes around the skillet and crack an egg into each space. 

5. Cook in the oven at 350 for about 15-20 minutes, until eggs are cooked to your liking! 

Strawberry Banana Oatmeal Bake

It's been a while! But I wanted to post this recipe I made for some guests this weekend! It was a hit-- the perfect amount of sweetness and so filling. I'll definitely make this for visitors again!  

Strawberry Banana Oatmeal Bake: 

Dry Ingredients-

- 3 cups old fashioned oats

- 3/4 cup brown sugar 

- 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

- 1 tsp cinnamon

- 1/2 tsp salt 

- pint of fresh strawberries, washed and chopped

Wet Ingredients- 

- 2 eggs, beaten

- 2.5 cups of milk

- 1 tsp. almond extract

- 4 T. butter, melted

Topping-

- 1-2 bananas, sliced

- melted peanut butter 

1. Preheat oven to 350. Spray a 9x13 with cooking spray or coat with butter. 

2. Mix dry ingredients and add to 9x13. 

3. Mix wet ingredients and pour on top. 

4. Bake for 40 minutes. 

5. Serve immediately with chopped bananas, peanut butter, and a splash of milk 

Chia coconut breakfast bowl

Recently I've had a smoothie for breakfast almost every morning. Some combination of frozen fruit (berries or banana) + leafy greens (spinach or kale) +  almond or cashew milk or water + nuts or nut butter + a superfood (hemp hearts, flaxseed, cacao powder). I LOVED this meal but wanted to try something different this week. I will absolutely make this again... Enjoy! 

Ingredients: 

-1 can of coconut milk (I use unsweetened Thai kitchen brand-- dont use the "light" version... Too thin.) 

- 2-3 T. Chia seeds 

- banana 

- hemp hearts 

- cinnamon 

1. Mix the coconut milk and chia seeds in a container with a lid. Refrigerate overnight. ** if the milk is separated when you open the can, put the milk in a container and microwave for 30 seconds and stir to combine. 

2. In the morning, slice one banana into the bottom of a bowl. 

3. Top with 1/3 c. Of the coconut milk/chia mixture. 

4. Top with 2-3 T. Hemp hearts for protein! Sprinkle cinnamon on top. Enjoy! 

Morning Glory Muffins

I've been craving a giant, cafe-style morning glory muffin! So I researched a few recipes and made these! Perfection. 

I doubled the recipe, which made 12 standard muffins and 9 jumbo muffins! 

Morning glory muffins: 

2 cups flour 

1/2 c brown sugar 

1/2 c sugar 

2 tsp baking soda 

2 tsp cinnamon 

1/4 tsp salt 

2 cups peeled and shredded carrots (about 5 large) 

1/3 c raisins or craisins 

1/2 c chopped walnuts 

1/2 Unsweetened coconut flakes 

1 Apple, shredded 

3 eggs 

1/2 c vegetable oil 

1/2 c applesauce 

2 tsp vanilla 

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Grease muffin cups, or line with muffin liners.
2. In large bowl, mix together flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. 
3. In a separate bowl, beat the eggs, oil, and vanilla. Stir in the carrot, raisins, nuts, coconut, and apple.
   Stir the dry mixture into the wet, just until moistened. Scoop batter into prepared muffin cups.
   Bake 20 mins for standard muffins and 25 mins for jumbo. You can test with a toothpick!When baking time is almost finished, melt 2 T. Butter and 1 scant T of sugar. Drizzle over muffins and place oven on High broil. Broil for several mins, until tops are browned and pretty! Watch closely, they burn quickly! This should only take 1-2 minutes. Leave the oven cracked open. 

Baked Granola

This is a tried and true family recipe. 

Feel free to vary the amounts! This time, I omitted most of the nuts and used oats, a few sliced almonds, sunflower seeds, shredded coconut, and craisins. Just keep this same ratio between your dry ingredients and wet ingredients! 

5 cups rolled oats 

1 cup fiber one cereal 

1 cup chopped almonds, pecans and/or walnuts 

1/2 cup dried fruit 

*Mix these ingredients in a large bowl. Then pour on a baking sheet. I covered my baking sheet in aluminum foil, raising the edges (to prevent spillage), and sprayed with non stick spray for easy cleanup! 

1 cup honey 

1 cup olive oil 

1 tsp vanilla 

*mix these and heat in the microwave for 30 seconds. Stir well and pour over dry ingredients. Stir well to coat. Bake at 300° for 30-45 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes. 

The granola will still seem "sticky" when it comes out of the oven. Be careful to not let it burn! As it sits at room temperature, it will crisp up. 

Make this and share with friends! It makes a glorious lot.  

Breakfast Quinoa

1 1/4 c. Uncooked quinoa

2 Mangos, chopped 

2 cups blueberries 

1/2 cup pecans 

2 T. Honey 

Cook quinoa according to package directions. Set aside and let cool. Add all the other ingredients. Store in the frig and eat it hot or cold! Voila... Breakfast for the week! 

Per serving (makes 6 servings total): 

287 cals 

9.2 fat 

48 carbs 

6.7 protein 

Twice Baked Breakfast Sweet Potatoes

Check out this breakfast!! Link below...

http://www.plaidandpaleo.com/2014/04/paleo-twice-baked-breakfast-sweet-potatoes.html

I made my sweet potatoes ahead of time. Then each morning I fried the bacon and baked the egg into the potato while I got ready for work. Loved loved this breakfast. Carbs, protein, and fat. And filling! 

Oatmeal Muffins

Adapted from: thefoodclick.com

2 cups oats

1 tsp. baking powder 

1/2 tsp. salt 

1/4 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (I don't recommend almonds or cashews in this recipe)

1/4 cup maple syrup

1 cup vanilla almond milk 

1/2 cup applesauce 

1.5 T coconut oil, melted 

2 tsp vanilla 

1/2-1 cup frozen or fresh blueberries (or any other berry) 

* could also use chocolate chips or sliced bananas 

1. Preheat oven to 375. Line muffin tin with 12 liners. I used silicone. Spray with nonstick spray. 

2. Combine first four ingredients in a bowl. 

3. In a blender, food processor, or with a hand held mixer, blend the maple syrup, almond milk, applesauce, coconut oil, and vanilla. 

4. Mix the wet ingredients into the dry. Then stir in your berries. 

5. Bake 20-25 mins. 

6. Eat warm or cold! 

Chia Seed Pudding

We recently enjoyed this chia seed pudding recipe for dessert at a friends house, and I couldn't wait to try it myself. Perfect for breakfast, snack, or dessert.

Copied from: The Food Network (Giada De Laurenttis recipe) 

Ingredients

• 1 cup vanilla-flavored unsweetened almond milk
• 1 cup plain low-fat (2 percent) Greek yogurt (I used 0% to cut down on calories)*
• 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup (preferably grade B), plus 4 teaspoons for serving
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• Kosher salt
• 1/4 cup chia seeds
• 1 pint strawberries, hulled and chopped
• 1/4 cup sliced almonds

*The 0% Greek yogurt will cause the pudding to be thinner... a little more runny. But we didn't mind that. 

Directions

In a medium bowl, gently whisk the almond milk, yogurt, 2 tablespoons maple syrup, the vanilla and 1/8 teaspoon salt until just blended. Whisk in the chia seeds; let stand 30 minutes. Stir to distribute the seeds if they have settled. Cover and refrigerate overnight. (Mine was in the frig for about a day and a half.) 

The next day, in a medium bowl, toss the berries with the remaining 4 teaspoons maple syrup. Mix in the almonds.

Spoon the pudding into 4 bowls or glasses; mound the berry mixture on top and serve.

Avocado Egg Toast

This has become a new favorite breakfast. This isn't paleo (because of the bread), but we've enjoyed it! Toast 1 slice of health nut, multi-grain, or oat bread. We put ours under the oven broiler for a couple minutes on each side. Top with 1/2 smashed avocado, 1 fried egg,  salt + pepper, and sriracha sauce!

"Slow Cooker Apple Pie Steel Cut Oatmeal"

My MIL shared this recipe with me, and it was a fun weekend treat. If you like oatmeal, you'll like this one! I think it would be great with berries, peanut butter, or nuts added in as well. And it's always nice to use the crock pot!

Cinnamon Apple 2-Minute Mug Cake

One Sunday morning, I was craving a muffin-like breakfast. This was quick, easy, and hit the spot.

Copied from: The Paleo Mom

Ingredients (for one cake):

• 1 egg
• 1/2 apple, peeled and cored
• 3 Tbsp almond flour
• 2 Tbsp walnuts
• 1 Tbsp shredded coconut
• 2 Tbsp honey
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• pinch salt

1. Very finely chop apple (I think it’s fastest to just throw it in a mini food processor or Magic Bullet and pulse a few times).  Chop walnuts.
2. Combine all ingredients in a microwave-safe mug.  Stir to combine (I like using a fork to really incorporate the egg).
3. Microwave on high for between 1 minute 45 seconds and 2 minutes (less if you have a high powered microwave, more if you have a lower powered microwave).
4. Enjoy! (fire in the fireplace optional)

Butternut Squash and Bacon Fritatta

 

Love having something made that I can grab and heat for weekday breakfasts. 

Fritatta: 

3-4 slices of Bacon

10 eggs 

splash of almond milk (optional)

Cherry tomatoes, roughly chopped

1 small butternut squash (cooked and cubed)

Fresh spinach 

1. Cook 3-4 pieces of bacon in a large skillet. 

2. Pour the loose bacon grease into a 9x13. Spread around to coat.

3. Then saute fresh spinach in the skillet. 

4. Remove. 

5. Beat 10 eggs in a bowl, and add cooked, cubed butternut squash, spinach, almond milk, salt and pepper. 

6. Pour into 9x13. Top with sliced cherry tomatoes and crumbled bacon. Bake on 350 for about 40 mins, until no longer wiggly. 

7. Broil in high for a few minutes, so that the eggs will brown a little on top. 

To cook butternut squash: 

1. Cut off the ends and cut in half (this will be tough.. please have a large, sharp knife and watch your fingers!) 

2. Place cut sides down in a 9 x13. Add a little water to the dish. 

3. Cook on 350 for 60-90 minutes.

4. Let cool slightly then peel and cut into cubes.

 

Perfect Paleo Banana Bread

 

Not too sweet, very moist. I was really pleased with the way this turned out! I made two loaves so I could share! 

Copied from: Three Diets One Dinner

 The Perfect Paleo Banana Bread
3 ripe bananas
4 Tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter, melted
3 large eggs
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups almond flour
1/4 cup coconut flour
1/4 cup arrowroot starch*
2 Tablespoons flax meal
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup pecans, chopped

*I happened to have arrowroot flour because I use it to thicken gravy, however the author says that this recipe is very forgiving if you need to double to coconut flour instead of using arrowroot.

Preheat the oven to 350º. Line a loaf pan with parchment paper or grease with butter. In a large bowl, mash the bananas with a potato masher or a large whisk. Mash them up really well. Whisk in the butter, eggs and vanilla, combining very well. In a medium bowl, whisk together the remaining dry ingredients, except the pecans. Make sure you break up all the flours (coconut flour tends to be especially clumpy). Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients with a rubber spatula to combine. Stir in the pecans. Pour the batter into the pan and bake for 55 minutes, until golden brown and an inserted toothpick comes out clean. 

Banana Crepes with Chocolate Protein Glaze

These are not paleo because of the oats, but they. are. delicious. 

Recipe copied from: @cleansimpleeats on Instagram 

Makes 1 serving: 337 cals, 15g fat, 38g carbs, 18g protein 

Crepes--

2 egg whites or 1 egg

1/2 banana

1/4 cup oats 

1/4 cup almond milk

Dash cinnamon

Dash stevia 

Glaze--

1/2 T nut butter (I used peanut butter) 

1/2 T coconut oil

Splash of almond milk

1 tsp. honey 

2 T chocolate protein powder (I'm sure you could Cocoa powder?) 

1. Heat small frying pan over medium high heat. Add a small amount of coconut oil. 

2. Add crepe ingredients to blender and whirl around until mixed well. 

3. Pour in 1/3-1/2 of the crepe mixture. Cook until edges begin to brown. Flip. Remove and roll up. 

4. Repeat with remaining batter. 

5. Glaze: melt nut butter and coconut oil together. Stir in other ingredients. Alter the amount of almond milk to reach your desired texture. Drizzle over Crepes. Top with sliced banana!!! 

**these were AMAZING and such a good treat. If you want something simpler, you could use nut butter as a glaze. Or simply honey and banana. 

Paleo Frittata (with bacon, red pepper, spinach, and black olives)

My go-to breakfasts are smoothies or fried eggs with sauteed spinach. But this week, I wanted to mix it up! This frittata recipe reminds me so much of what my Mom makes EVERY Christmas morning. This is just a simplified, paleo version. :) And it's perfect for on-the-go mornings. Just heat and eat.

"Thanksgiving Frittata" (With bacon, red pepper, spinach, and black olives)
Recipe copied from: The Paleo Mom

Ingredients:

• ½ medium yellow onion (or 1 small onion), finely diced
• 1 ½ cups red bell pepper, diced (about 1 large pepper)
• 4 cups chopped fresh spinach
• 6oz bacon (about 6-7 thick slices)
• 1 cup sliced black olives(equivalent to a 3.8oz-can)
• 8 eggs, beaten (I used 12-- depends on the diameter of your pan)

1. Heat an oven proof skillet (like a 12” cast iron frying pan) over medium high heat and turn on broiler (on high) to preheat oven.
2. Cut bacon into small pieces (I like to use scissors for this job).  Add bacon and onion to pan and cook, stirring occasionally, until the bacon is crisp and onion is fully cooked and caramlized (8-10 minutes).
3. Add pepper and olives to pan and sauté, stirring occasionally, until pepper is cooked (4-5 minutes).  Add spinach and stir to wilt, about 1 minute.
4. Add beaten eggs.  Stir around! Let cook on stove top 1-2 minutes, stirring a couple of times.
5. Place skillet in oven and broil until eggs are completely cooked, puffed up and starting to brown on top (about 7-10 minutes, varies oven to oven so watch carefully). If your pan is NOT oven proof, place heat on low and cover. Cook until the eggs are no longer giggly.
6. Serve and enjoy!

Pumpkin Bread

I wanted to do a little something for our sweet realtor. She went above and beyond to get us into this house!!

I asked my mom, and she suggested baking pumpkin bread. She always knows what to do. :) I agreed that pumpkin bread would be the perfect little "thank you." 

When I need to find the best recipe of its kind, I check www.allrecipes.com and search by rating. This pumpkin bread has over 5,000 5-star reviews!

"Downeast Maine Pumpkin Bread"

Original recipe makes 3 - 7x3 inch loaf pans

1 15-oz can pumpkin puree

4 eggs

1 c. vegetable oil

2/3 c. water

3 c. white sugar

3 1/2 c. flour

2 tsp. baking soda

1 1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. nutmeg

1 tsp. cinnamon 

1/2 tsp. ground cloves 

1/4 tsp. ground ginger 

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour three 7x3 inch loaf pans.
2. In a large bowl, mix together pumpkin puree, eggs, oil, water and sugar until well blended. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and ginger. Stir the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture until just blended. Pour into the prepared pans.
3. Bake for about 50 minutes in the preheated oven. Loaves are done when toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

***I baked mine for at least 65! Just keep checking. 

Randy's Story

When Billie and I moved to Arizona and prayed for a good church, God kinda blew us out of the water with Thunder Mountain Community Church. Just by introducing ourselves to some people on Sunday morning and then connecting with the church on Facebook, twitter, etc, we were able to make friends and plug in almost immediately. Because of the church, I met my friend Charity the day before my first triathlon... and she was competing in it too. That alone was a blessing since I was scared out of my wits, and she had done the race before! 

We immediately bonded with our pastor. One reason was that he recently had tongue cancer. After his surgeries and treatment were completed, he received speech therapy. Yay for speech! :) (I'm a speech therapist, if you didn't get that.) That all happened before we moved to Arizona. The video below is a commercial promoting UAMC in Tucson. Pretty cool.

But Pastor Randy and his wife Kim are such a cool couple... I adore them, and I've told them so. It's been a huge blessing to work at the church office a few days a week. Often even in passing, Pastor Randy has passed on bits of encouragement or wisdom that seemed to be just what I needed at that time. If you want to grow spiritually, surround yourself with older, wiser Christians and see what happens. 


A few of my favorite Randy quotes:
"I believe there are more answers in heaven than there are prayers on earth."

"It's imperfection that allows us to represent Christ the best."

"Be willing to step over offenses and see the person's heart."

"I don't trust God if... I don't trust God when... I trust God period." --- in relation to cancer

"Ladies: focus on your husbands strengths and he will grow in those areas. Dwell on weaknesses and you will have a wimp!" --- Simple, Not Easy marriage series

 

Back to my main point for this post: This is Pastor Appreciation Month. So the church staff is doing little things for Randy all month.

I offered to make paleo muffins this week, and that's what I did!

Randy has a friend and a fellow pastor of his who are now "paleo," and we joke that maybe God is trying to tell him something. :) Next month, Billie and I are having Pastor Randy and Mrs. Kim over and cooking a paleo meal to give them a taste. Pun intended.

Anywho, I made paleo cinnamon pecan pumpkin muffins and my other favorite- coconut apple muffins for the occasion.

Paleo Cinnamon Pecan Pumpkin Muffins

Paleo Coconut Apple Muffins

Pastor Randy sent me this picture... eating his 4th... I think muffins were a success.

Paleo Cinnamon Pecan Pumpkin Muffins
From: Fit Paleo Mom

To make muffins you will need:
1 cup almond flour
1 cup almond butter
1 cup canned pumpkin
3 eggs, whisked
1/2 cup raw honey
1/3 cup coconut oil
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped pecans

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Mix almond flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon in a large bowl (I also added pumpkin pie spice)
3. Add eggs, almond butter, honey, pumpkin and coconut oil
4. Mix well
5. Add chopped pecans
6. Pour into individual greased muffin tins in equal amounts
7. Bake for 15-20 min (I baked mine longer)

Paleo Quiche

During our trip to home sweet home Louisiana a few weeks ago, my Aunt Susan made a really good spinach quiche. I have wanted to remake it since I got back to Arizona!

So I searched for a recipe for grain free, dairy free quiche crust... and I settled on this one.

Quiche recipe

Crust:
Copied from The Preppy Paleo
1/2 cup coconut oil, melted
2 eggs, beaten
3/4 cup coconut flour
1/2 tsp. sea salt

Preheat oven to 350. Combine eggs and coconut oil until well-blended. Stir in coconut flour and salt and mix until a dough forms. Grease a pie plate (I used coconut oil) and press dough into the bottom and up the sides, into an even layer. Spread it thin-- trust me, there's enough. Prick dough all over with a fork. Bake for 10 minutes and set aside. (I had to use my tart pan, because I couldn't find my pie plate!)

Filling:
*I did my own thing for this part
10 eggs, beaten
1 small yellow onion, diced and sauteed until lightly brown
1 bag of spinach or 1 bundle of french spinach, chopped and sauteed until wilted
1 big splash (think ~1/4 cup splash) of unsweetened almond milk
salt
pepper

Mix together all the above ingredients and pour into your pie dish. (May want to make sure your onions and spinach are cooled a little before adding your eggs in... don't want the eggs to start cooking!) Return to oven and bake for about 30-35 minutes, until the center is firm. Allow to cool slightly before cutting.

You can always add sausage or bacon or another veggie to this mixture! Just cook your meat first. And lessen the amount of eggs, since your additions will take up some room. :)

Is there such a thing as too many quiche pictures?? You're right... no.

Banana bread- off

A while back, I planned to test out several different banana bread/muffin recipes and give you my vote. The problem is.... I made these two so far apart that I can't remember which one we liked more! But I do know we liked them both. :) So have at it. Both get my approval. 

1. Paleo Banana Bread from Civilized Caveman:

Ingredients

• 4 bananas, (2 1/2 cups mashed or 575 grams)(they can be yellow bananas)
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup almond butter (140 grams)(or coconut, sunflower seed, macadamia nut, etc butter)
• 4 tablespoons grass-fed butter, melted (can substitute coconut oil)
• 1/2 cup coconut flour (75 grams)(or almond flour, macadamia nut meal, etc)
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder (gluten free or homemade)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• pinch of sea salt

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit
2. Combine your bananas, eggs, and nut butter, and grass-fed butter in a blendtec, blender, food processor, or mixing bowl and mix well (if using a mixing bowl you need a good hand-mixer)
3. Once all of your ingredients are blended, add in your coconut flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, vanilla, and sea salt and mix well
4. Grease a 9×5 glass (see notes) loaf pan with a fat of your choice (I used grass-fed butter). If you use a metal pan it will probably bake in 35-40 minutes so start checking at 35 to ensure the middle stays moist
5. Pour in your batter and spread it evenly throughout
6. Place in your preheated oven and bake for 55-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean
7. Remove from oven and flip your bread out onto a cooling rack
8. Slice and serve

Variations

1. Cranberry Orange – Only use 3 tablespoons of butter. Add zest of one whole orange diced, juice of one whole orange, and1 cup dried cranberries or fresh if you want
2. Chocolate Blueberry – Add 1 cup of fresh blueberries and 1/2 cup of cocoa powder
3. Pumpkin Pecan – Reduce the almond butter to 1/4 cup and add 1/2 cup of pumpkin puree and 1 cup of roughly chopped pecan pieces

Notes

If you want to make these into muffins, use the same recipe and for mini muffins bake approximately 25 mins and normal size muffins 30-35 minutes.

Nutrition Information

Calories: 206 Fat: 17 grams Carbohydrates: 10 gram Sugar: 1 gram Sodium: 207 grams Protein: 6 gram

2. Paleo Banana Walnut Muffins from Crossfit Frederick 

DRY INGREDIENTS
2 cups almond flour
1/3 cup coconut flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt (I would do less.)
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 cup baking walnuts (chopped)

WET INGREDIENTS
2-3 over-ripe bananas
1 tbsp vanilla
3 eggs (at room temperature)
1/3 cup honey
3 tbsp coconut oil (I like coconut oil the best, but olive oil also works fine.)
2 tbsp almond butter

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Place walnuts on a baking sheet, and put them in the oven to roast. Watch them closely, as they do burn easily. Mash bananas into a liquid. Mix in honey and almond butter.
Beat eggs, oil and vanilla. Add to banana mixture.
In a separate bowl, mix all dry ingredients, including toasted walnuts.
Mix wet and dry ingredients.
Spoon batter into lined muffin cups.
Bake 15–20 minutes.

Makes 12 muffins