Paleo Brownies

Paleo Brownies

Yields 12
Ingredients:
cooking spray
½ cup cocoa powder
1 tsp baking soda

½ tsp sea salt

One 16 oz jar creamy almond butter

1 ¼ cups agave nectar or honey

2 eggs

1 tbsp vanilla extract

1 cup dark chocolate chunks


Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray a 9 inch square pan with cooking spray.In a mixing bowl, combine the cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt.

2. In a separate bowl, blend the almond butter, agave nectar or honey, eggs, and vanilla extract. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir to form a smooth, heavy batter. Stir in the chocolate chunks.

3. Spread the batter in the prepared baking pan. Bake until the edges are browned and the center is set, about 25 minutes. Let cool on a baking rack before cutting into squares.

Recipe courtesy of Paleo Kids Cookbook

Overnight Simple Chia Pudding

Overnight Simple Chia Pudding

Prep time: 5 minutes
Yields: 2

Ingredients:
1/3 cup white chia seeds
1 ½ cups your choice milk (I like unsweetened almond or coconut)
2 Tbsp maple syrup, warm honey or agave
½ tsp vanilla

Directions:
1. Combine all ingredients in a glass pint sized jar. Cover with lid and vigorously shake.
2. Chill for an hour and shake again. Let sit for a minimum of 4 hours or overnight.
3. Chia seeds will expand into a pudding consistency.
4. Enjoy with sliced fruit or berries and chopped nuts!

Oven Roasted Cauliflower Rice

Oven Roasted Cauliflower Rice

Yields: 2-4
Ingredients:

1 head cauliflower
1 tbsp coconut oil, melted
3/4 tsp salt

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 425F. Cover a large, rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil.
2. Break the cauliflower into florets, removing the stems. Place the florets in the food processor bowl and pulse until the cauliflower looks like rice. This takes about 10 to 15 one-second pulses. You may need to do this in two batches to avoid overcrowding.
3.Place the cauliflower rice in a large bowl, add the melted coconut oil and salt. Toss with two wooden spoons until the rice is coated with the oil. Spread in a single layer on the baking sheet and roast until tender and beginning to get a few brown spots, about 25 minutes.
4. Serve with anything that needs a lovely bed of rice.

Variations:

Cauliflower Rice Pilaf
Roast the cauliflower rice as instructed above. Meanwhile, heat the coconut oil and add the apricots, raisins, pine nuts, onion, and garlic. Stir with a wooden spoon to combine and cook until the onions are translucent and the nuts start to brown, about 5 minutes. Push the onions to the side of the pan and add the remaining 1 tablespoon of coconut oil. Add the cumin and cinnamon to the oil, then stir everything together—oil, spices, onions, nuts, fruit—so they all mingle in happy harmony. When you can smell the spices, about 30 seconds, turn off the heat, toss in the roasted rice, and toss until everything is combined. Try a bite, then season with salt and pepper.

Citrus Cauliflower Rice
Roast the cauliflower rice as instructed above. Meanwhile, heat the coconut oil and add the onions, cooking until the onions are translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and Aleppo pepper and stir-fry until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the ghee to the pan, along with the lemon zest and lemon juice. Toss in the roasted rice and stir until combined. Add the parsley, try a bite, then season with plenty of salt and a little pepper.

Recipes courtesy of http://meljoulwan.com.

Roasted Acorn Squash & Leek Soup

Roasted Acorn Squash & Leek Soup

Yields: 4

Ingredients
2 acorn squash
1 tbsp butter, vegans use olive oil

 1 about 1 cup large leek, light green and white part only

 4 cups fat free, low sodium chicken broth (vegans use vegetable stock)

 2 tbsp pepitas, raw pumpkin seeds

 2 tbsp chopped chives
  Preheat oven to 350°.

Directions
1.  Cut acorn squash in half and bake until tender, about 40 – 45 minutes. Remove from the oven.

  2. Discard dark green part of the leek. Leeks usually tend to be sandy, so I like to clean them well by separating the layers and washing them well under cold water. Chop leeks and sauté in a large pot with butter or oil over medium low heat until tender, about 5 minutes.

3. When squash is cool enough to handle, scoop out seeds and discard. Scoop out the flesh from the skin and add to the pot with leeks.

4  Add about 2/3 of the chicken stock to the pot; stir well and simmer about 5 minutes. Using an immersion blender or a regular blender, blend soup until smooth. Add remaining broth and simmer a few more minutes. Adjust salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with pepitas and chopped chives.


Recipe courtesy of  https://www.skinnytaste.com/

Massaged Kale Salad

Massaged Kale Salad

Yields: 6-8
Ingredients

1 bunch kale (black kale is especially good), stalks removed and discarded, leaves thinly sliced

1 lemon, juiced

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling

Kosher salt

2 tsp honey

Freshly ground black pepper

1 mango, diced small (about 1 cup)

Small handful toasted pepitas (pumpkin seeds), about 2 rounded tbps

Directions

1.In large serving bowl, add the kale, half of lemon juice, a drizzle of oil and a little kosher salt. Massage until the kale starts to soften and wilt, 2 to 3 minutes. Set aside while you make the dressing.

2. In a small bowl, whisk remaining lemon juice with the honey and lots of freshly ground black pepper. Stream in the 1/4 cup of oil while whisking until a dressing forms, and you like how it tastes.

3. Pour the dressing over the kale, and add the mango and pepitas. Toss and serve.

Paleo Breakfast Casserole (Whole30)

Paleo Breakfast Casserole (Whole30)

Yields: 10

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 1 hour 15minutes

Ingredients

12 slices nitrate free bacon sugar free for Whole30

2 large sweet potatoes peeled and sliced into thin rounds approximately 1/4″

1 tbsp melted cooking fat** + sea salt for roasting the sweet potatoes

3 cups Brussels sprouts tops removed and either quartered or chopped, plus about 1 tbsp cooking fat** plus a pinch of sea salt for roasting

1 large onion or 2 small sliced thin

12 eggs

1/3 cup full fat coconut milk

1/2 tsp salt plus to suit your taste

1/4 cup nutritional yeast this is for a cheesy flavor, you can also sub Parmesan if you include dairy in your diet

1/2 tsp garlic powder

Black pepper to taste

Instructions

  1. Preheat your oven to 425 F and grease a 9×13″ casserole dish with coconut oil, and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
  2. Cut the bacon into 1″ pieces and cook in a large heavy skillet, over medium high heat, stirring occasionally for even browning, until crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon to drain on paper towels and set aside. Reserve at least 3-4 tbsp of bacon fat to caramelize onions.*
  3. Next, roast the sweet potatoes and brussels sprouts. Toss the sweet potato rounds with cooking fat of choice and sea salt to taste (I add a generous pinch) and arrange, (overlapping since they will shrink after roasting) over the bottom of your casserole dish.
  4. Arrange the brussels sprouts on the parchment lined baking sheet in a single layer. Place the casserole dish and baking sheet in your oven to roast. The sweet potatoes will roast for about 30 minutes until soft and the brussels sprouts for about 20.
  5. Meanwhile, caramelize the onions. Heat the pan you cooked your bacon in over low/medium heat and add the onions, tossing with the leftover reserved bacon fat*
  6. Add a pinch of salt, and cook, stirring occasionally, adjusting the heat if any onions begin to brown too quickly. Cook the onions long and slow (about 25 minutes) to bring out the most flavor. Once the onions are deeply caramelized and very soft, remove from heat.
  7. While the onions cook, whisk together the eggs, coconut milk, nutritional yeast, salt, pepper, and garlic powder.
  8. Lower your oven heat to 400 F, then assemble the casserole. Layer your roasted brussels sprouts over your sweet potato rounds in the casserole dish. Remove the caramelized onions with a slotted spoon and layer over the brussels sprouts, follow with the cooked bacon. Finally, pour all the whisked egg mixture over the casserole to evenly cover.
  9. Bake in the 400 F oven for about 25 minutes until the center is just set and edges begin to turn light brown. Allow to cool for a bit in the baking dish before cutting into pieces and serving warm. Leftovers can be stored, covered, in the refrigerator for up to 5 days*** Enjoy!

Recipe Notes

*If you want to use a different cooking fat to caramelize the onions, coconut oil or ghee are your best bets!
**Melted coconut oil, ghee, or light-flavored olive oil will work well here
***If you wish to freeze this casserole to make ahead of time, cover tightly and freeze before the final baking step.

Banana Breakfast Cookies

Banana Breakfast Cookies

INGREDIENTS:
2 medium ripe bananas
2 flax eggs
1/2 cup almond butter
2 tbsp melted coconut oil
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cup gluten-free rolled oats
1 cup oat flour or almond meal


*Optional Mix-Ins* 
1/4 cup raw walnuts – chopped
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips (or Enjoy Life chocolate chips if vegan or dairy-free)
3/4 cup pitted, chopped dates

INSTRUCTIONS:
1 Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, combine flaxseed and water (2 tbsp flaxseed + 5 tbsp water) and let sit for 5 minutes. Once it has created an “eggy” texture, mash in the bananas until well combined.
2  Add in almond butter, coconut oil, vanilla, maple syrup, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Stir well.

3 Add in oats and flour and mix until well combined. Fold in mix-ins and stir until just combined.

4 Shape about 3 tbsp of cookie dough into a ball and place on a prepared baking sheet. Using a fork, flatten cookies slightly. Bake the cookies for 15-18 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown. Carefully remove cookies from the baking sheet using a spatula and place them on a cooling rack.

Recipe courtesy of thebalancedlifeonline

Dr Mercola’s Breakfast Shake

Dr Mercola’s Breakfast Shake

  • 2 oz. organic coconut oil
  • 1 whole avocado
  • 2 tbsp organic whole flaxseeds
  • 1 tbsp organic raw cacao nibs
  • 1 oz chia seeds
  • 2 oz organic whole husk psyllium 
  • 2 oz organic black sesame seeds
  • 1 tsp D-Ribose
  • 1 to 2 scoops organic vegan protein powder, chocolate flavor
  • 12 oz filtered water
  • 1 to 2 tsp cinnamon (optional)
  • ½ tsp Acetyl L-Carnitine (optional, recommended if you’re vegetarian or vegan)

Method:

  1. Grind the flaxseeds and cacao nibs in a coffee grinder.
  2. Combine the ground flaxseeds, cacao nibs, and all other ingredients in a bowl.
  3. Use a hand mixer to blend thoroughly.
  4. Consume right away.

Recipe courtesy ofhttps://recipes.mercola.com

Creamy Berry Smoothie

Creamy Berry Smoothie

Prep Time

10 minutes

Cooking Time

5 minutes

Yields

2 servings

Ingredients

1 avocado
1 cup blueberries
1 cup blackberries
2 tbsp chia seeds
Juice of 2 limes
1 cup almond milk
5 ice cubes

Directions

  1. Wash and pat all produce dry.
  2. De-pit and score avocado and transfer to blender.
  3. Add remaining ingredients and blend on high until smooth and creamy.

Credit

Recipe courtesy of  The Integrative Nutrition Cookbook, 2016