Cooking WOD 12.13 Paleo Flax Tortillas

From http://realsustenance.com/flax-tortillas-glutengrainstarcheggcornsoynut-free/

INGREDIENTS:

¼ cup flax meal + 6 tbsp hot water

1 cup flax meal

2 tbsp coconut flour

1 tsp sea salt

Additional spice ideas:  chili flakes, pepper, chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, curry, chives, cinnamon, etc

METHOD:

1.       In a small bowl, combine the ¼ cup flax meal and hot water.  Mix to create thick, goopy “flax eggs.”

2.       Add the “flax eggs” to a larger bowl with the additional cup of flax meal and coconut flour.  Also add any spices you want to use.

3.       Mix with a spoon, then use your hands to knead the thick dough.  Eventually it will not be sticky, but should be elastic and hold together nicely.  If you feel your dough is too dry, run your fingers under some water and add moisture to the dough with your hands.

4.       Divide dough into 8 balls.  Roll each ball out between two sheets of parchment paper as thin as you can get.

5.       Preheat skillet to medium high.  Lightly oil.  One it’s hot, place the tortilla in it and cook 30-40 seconds, then flip over for another 30-40 seconds.  Remove and continue with the rest of the pile.  Re-oil the skillet as needed.  The longer you cook these, the crispier they become.  If you want them malleable, don’t overcook them.

6.       Serve warm!  Yum!

Breaking News from Trish! PALEO FUDGE HAS BEEN PERFECTED!!!

BREAKING NEWS!!! BREAKING NEWS!!!

Resident chocaholic, Trish O'Neill has just perfected paleo fudge!!!

coconut manna
cocoa
honey
almond butter

(proportions depend on taste - believe me, they do not matter and it will ALWAYS taste good. dammit!

blend til chocolate gooey loveliness.  Refrigerate.  Cut and devour.  

Cooking WOD 12.12 Asparagus Bacon Frittata

(recipe from http://fastpaleo.com/asparagus-bacon-frittata-2/)

INGREDIENTS:

• 3-5 slices of bacon plus extra bacon grease for cooking
• 1/2 yellow onion, sliced
• 1-2 cloves garlic, chopped finely or minced
• 1/2-1 lb. asparagus, sliced on the bias (diagonally)
• 5-6 eggs, beaten

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Cook bacon in skillet until crispy. Remove from pan and let cool on paper towels.
2. Add sliced onion to bacon grease, adding a bit more if needed. Keep heat at medium low and let onions cook slowly to get caramelized (about 10 minutes). Stir occasionally.
3. When onions are soft, add the chopped garlic and stir. Let cook one minute until garlic is fragrant.
4. Add asparagus and turn heat up to medium. Let cook for 5-10 minutes, or until asparagus is cooked to desired doneness.
5. Meanwhile, chop your cooled bacon into small strips. Turn on the oven to the broil setting.
6. When asparagus is done, stir in chopped bacon. Then pour the eggs over the asparagus mixture and make sure it covers everything evenly.
7. Let cook on the stovetop for about 2 minutes, then transfer to the oven (on a middle rack). Cook in oven for 5-10 minutes or until the eggs are cooked through and no longer appear wet on top.
8. Remove from oven and serve!

Cooking WOD 12.12 BACON COOKIES!!!!!!

Recipe from http://thepaleocritic.blogspot.com/2012/03/infamous-bacon-cookies.html

INGREDIENTS
5 slices nitrate free bacon
1/4 cup pure maple syrup (to coat bacon)
3 cups almond flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 eggs
1/2 cup pure maple syrup (for batter)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup coconut oil
1 cup organic chocolate chips

INSTRUCTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. In medium mixing bowl, toss bacon in 1/4 cup maple syrup
3. Lay bacon on parchment lined baking sheet
4. Bake for 20 minutes
5. Remove bacon and allow to cool
6. Crumble candied bacon for cookie batter
7. Increase oven temp to 375 degrees
8. In medium sized bowl, mix all dry ingredients
9. In small bowl, beat eggs, 1/2 cup maple syrup and vanilla extract with hand mixer
10. Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix
11. Add melted coconut oil into batter and mix
12. Stir in chocolate chips and bacon crumbles
13. Drop balls of dough onto baking sheet
14. Bake for about 15 minutes at 375 degrees
15. Cool and serve

NOTES FOR NEXT TIME:  Half as many chocolate chips, twice as much bacon...

Cooking WOD 12.12 Pecan Crusted Chicken

(from Everyday Paleo - http://everydaypaleo.com/2010/05/01/pecan-crusted-chicken/)

INGREDIENTS
4 chicken breasts
1/2 cup organic spicy brown mustard
2 tbsp raw organic honey
1 cup pecans
sea salt

INSTRUCTIONS
Pre heat oven to 350. In a medium sized mixing bowl blend together the mustard and honey.  Toss the pecans in a food processor and pulse until the nuts are finely chopped.  Pour the chopped pecans either on a plate or in a pie pan if you have one.  Using a paper towel, remove any excess moisture from the outside of your chicken breasts.  Taking one chicken breast at a time, first place the chicken into the mustard/honey mixture and coat on both sides.  Transfer chicken to the chopped pecans and again cover both sides.  Place coated chicken into a greased glass baking dish (I used a little olive oil spray to cover the bottom of the dish) and sprinkle each chicken breast with just a little sea salt.  Bake at 350 for 45 minutes or until the chicken juices run clear.

Cooking WOD 12.11 Paleo Mango Coconut Chipotle Chicken

Sweet, Spicy, and Wicked Easy…

From PaleoPot:  (http://paleopot.com/2012/06/paleo-mango-coconut-chipotle-chicken/)

Four ingredients, and you only have to cut two of them. This is the type of recipe you prep at the last minute in the morning, and come home to after work feeling like a genius.

What you need:

• 1 pound of chicken (breasts or thighs).
• 1 can of coconut milk (we use TJ’s light coconut milk)
• 1 large softball sized mango or 2 small mangos. Look for one that is not quite ripe yet, nice and firm.
• 1 tablespoon of dried chipotle flakes.

How you make it:

1. Dump your can of coconut milk into your slow cooker.
2. Peel your mango and cut it into large and medium cubes.
3. Throw your mango cubes along with the mango’s pit into your slow cooker. The meat on the pit will add flavor.
4. Cut your chicken into cubes as well. Dump them into your cooker.
5. Add your chipotle flakes and stir well.
6. Cook on high for 3 hours or on low for 5 to 6 hours.

Cooking WOD 12.11 Sea Salt Caramel Bars

Recipe from Lululemon (http://www.lululemon.com/community/blog/seawheeze-sea-salt-caramel-bars-yum/?cid=fbseawheezebars)

Makes 12-15 bars

 
ingredients
• 4 cups of fresh pitted Medjool dates (about 48 dates)
• 3 cups of raw cashews
• 4 tablespoon chia seeds
• 2 tsp sea salt
• dash of vanilla extract (optional)

directions
1. Place the pitted dates in a bowl and soak in water for 15 minutes. (This can be longer or shorter depending on the amount of time you have. The purpose is to soften them to make them process more easily into a paste). Drain the dates.
2. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Fahrenheit
3. Put all ingredients (dates, cashews, chia seeds, sea salt and vanilla (if you are using it) in a food processor. Process the mixture for about a minute. You may need to stop the processing and scrape the sides of the bowl and then process again.
4. Once the mixture is smooth, form the mixture into bars with your hands and place on a cooking sheet.
5. Bake* the bars for 15 minutes. Remove and put them on a pan with wax paper or parchment paper and place in the freezer until you are ready to enjoy!
*the purpose of baking the bars is to take out stickiness, not to make the bars crunchy. Your final bar should be soft yet still together.

Special Guest Chef - Whitney Doel!!! (Whitney's Sweet Potato Stuff)

Whitney's Sweet Potato Stuff

It's certainly not precise, but I peeled and diced two large sweet potatoes into cube-ish size pieces. I tossed them in a bit of olive oil and baked at 350 for somewhere around 20-25mins. They should be soft, but not mushy. They kept their cube-like shape so keep an eye on them.

I diced a few scallions (I like more so I did about 6) including the green and some of the white part, crumbled some nitrate-free bacon (about 5 slices) and I added some walnut bits. I think next time I would use Pecans instead because they are a bit more flavorful. I added a few dashes of cayenne (because I like spicy), some sea salt, and some black pepper.

I chilled it overnight and have been eating it for lunch all week, served cold with my other food.

Enjoy!!!

Cooking WOD 12.10 Homemade Larabars

Yum!  I found a list of a zillion recipes to make our own Larabars.  Check it out:

• Apple Pie
• 1 cup mixed almonds and walnuts
• 1 cup dates
• 1 cup mixed raisins and dried apple
• 2 tbsp cinnamon
• Banana Bread
• 1 cup almonds
• 1 cup dates
• 1 cup dried banana
• Blueberry Muffin
• 1 cup cashews
• 1 cup dates
• 1 cup dried blueberries
• Zest and juice of 1 lemon
• 1 vanilla bean, scraped
• Cappuccino
• 1 cup mixed almonds and cashews
• 1 cup dates
• 1 cup coffee beans
• 1 vanilla bean, scraped
• Carrot Cake
• 1 cup mixed almonds and walnuts
• 1 cup mixed dates and raisins
• 1 cup mixed dried pineapple, shredded coconut, and carrot
• 1 tbsp coconut oil
• 2 tbsp cinnamon
• Cashew Cookie
• 1 cup cashews
• 1 cup dates
• Cherry Pie
• 1 cup almonds
• 1 cup dates
• 1 cup dried cherries
• Chocolate Chip Brownie
• 1 cup mixed almonds and walnuts
• 1 cup dates
• 1 cup chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup cacao powder
• Chocolate Chip Cherry Torte
• 1 cup mixed almonds and cashews
• 1 cup dates
• 1 cup mixed chocolate chips and dried cherries
  
• Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
• 1 cup cashews
• 1 cup dates
• 1 cup chocolate chips
•  Chocolate Coconut Chew
• 1 cup mixed almonds and walnuts
• 1 cup dates
• 1 cup shredded coconut
• 4 tbsp cacao powder
•  Coconut Cream Pie
• 1 cup mixed almonds and cashews
• 1 cup dates
• 1 cup shredded coconut
• 2 tbsp coconut oil
• Ginger Snap
• 1 cup mixed almonds and pecans
• 1 cup dates
• 2 tbsp fresh ginger
  
• 1 tbsp mixed cinnamon and cloves
  
• Key Lime Pie
• 1 cup mixed cashews and almonds
• 1 cup dates
• 1 cup shredded coconut 
• Zest and juice of 1 lime
• Lemon Bar
• 1 cup mixed cashews and almonds
• 1 cup dates
• Zest and juice of 1 lemon
• Peanut Butter & Jelly
• 1 cup peanuts
• 1 cup dates
• 1 cup dried cherries
• Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip
• 1 cup peanuts
• 1 cup dates
• 1 cup chocolate chips
• Peanut Butter Cookie
• 1 cup peanuts
• 1 cup dates
• Pecan Pie
• 1 cup mixed pecans and almonds
• 1 cup dates
• Tropical Fruit Tart
• 1 cup mixed almonds and cashews
• 1 cup dates
• 1 cup mixed dried pineapple and shredded coconut
• Zest and juice of 1 orange
• 1 tbsp coconut oil

In your food processor, mix together fruit and nuts until a sticky, workable dough is formed.  Add flavoring, and process well.  Add fillings, and pulse until combined - being careful not to wreck the texture.  Shape into six equal sized bars, and wrap in parchment paper or plastic wrap.  If you're in a hurry, you can shape the dough into eight to twelve balls, instead.  Lärabars should keep in the refrigerator or freezer in an airtight container for up to a month.

Special Guest Chef - ChrisAnn Polino Miranda!!! (Paleo Shrimp Primavera)

Today's special guest chef is ChrisAnn from CFNH with a delicious shrimp dish with spaghetti squash.  I'll let her teach you...

Paleo Shrimp Primavera

Shrimp- Deveined, tails off
garlic
olive oil
parsley
salt/pepper
Lemon juice
Spaghetti Squash
Basil

Put shrimp in ziploc bag add Olive oil, garlic, parsley, salt & pepper. Marinate for an hour or so.

Microwave Spaghetti squash

Coat pan with olive oil, & add shrimp with marinade. I added more garlic, salt & pepper. Cook for about 4 min per side.

When shrimp is done add lemon juice. (at very end)
Scrape Squash into your bowl, pour/scoop shrimp mix over. Top with Fresh Basil!

It was really good & simple..Enjoy

Cooking WOD 12.9 (Plantain Tortilla Chips)

This one looks yummy!  I can't wait to try it!!



 Originally from http://fastpaleo.com/plantain-tortilla-chips/

Ingredients

• 3 Green Plantains
• 2 Tbsp Coconut Oil (refined)
• 1/2 tsp Sea Salt
• Coarse Sea Salt

Cooking Steps

1. Peel and slice the plantains into about 1/4 inch slices and lay flat on a cookie sheet for about an hour (this can be skipped if plantains don’t seem very moist, wet on the fresh slice side)
2. Add the plantains and oil to a food processor and combine until smooth. Once all the lumps are gone, add the sea salt and quickly combine
3. Place the mixture on a sheet of parchment paper the size of your cookie sheet
4. If the dough is dry enough, place another piece of parchment over the top and with a rolling pin, roll out to about 1/8 inch thick rectangle. If the dough seems too wet, spread out evenly with a spatula (I have had dry and I have had wet plantains, not sure what contributes to that)
5. Using a sharp knife or pizza cutter, cut into the shape and size of chip you prefer
6. Sprinkle coarse sea salt or regular sea salt over the top of the dough and slide the paper onto a cookie sheet
7. Bake at 400 for 25-30 minutes until golden brown. You may need to remove some chips as you go that brown faster than the others. Make sure to cook them long enough or they will be chewy instead of crunchy
8. Remove cookie sheet and let chips cool. You may need to re-cut the chips or you can break them along the cut lines
9. Store in an airtight container, glass is my favorite
*The easiest way to peel a plantain is to first cut off the ends. Then with a knife, slice along the pronounced ridges (about 3 of them). Don’t worry if you cut into the plantain, it won’t matter. Peel one section at a time, it should come off pretty easily.

Cooking WOD 12.9 (Spicy Chicken Salad Tostadas)

 
(originally from http://fastpaleo.com/spicy-chicken-salad-tostadas/)

Ingredients

• 12.5 oz. Canned Chicken (you can used shredded chicken breast if you have some on hand too)
• 2 Tbsp. Yellow Mustard
• 1 Tbsp. Hot Sauce
• 1 Jalapeno, chopped
• 2 Tbsp. Red Onion, chopped
• 1/2 Lime, juice of
• Jicama, sliced in rounds
• 1 Roma Tomato
• 1 Avocado

Cooking Steps
 
1. In a bowl mix together the chicken, mustard, hot sauce, jalapeno, onion and lime juice. You can add more or less of the mustard. It’s totally up to you. I like mustard so I like the consistency that 2 Tbsp. gives me.
2. Top your jicama rounds with your spicy chicken salad.
3. Finish off with a couple slices of Roma tomato and avocado.

Cooking WOD 12.9 (Chili Lime Jicama Hash)

 
(originally from http://fastpaleo.com/chili-lime-jicama-hash/)

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 yellow onion, diced
• 4 cups peeled and grated jicama
• 1 tsp chili powder (more if you like it spicy)
• Juice of 1 lime
• Dash of salt and pepper

Cooking Steps
 
Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
Add diced onion and cook until translucent, stirring often. About 3 minutes.
Add the jicama, lime juice, chili powder, salt and pepper and cook until brown, stirring often, 6-8 minutes.

Cooking WOD 12.9 (Creamy Buffalo Chicken Zingers)

 
(originally from http://fastpaleo.com/creamy-buffalo-chicken-zingers/)

Ingredients

• 5 lbs of boneless, skinless chicken tenderloins - 18-20 pieces
• 1 Can of Coconut milk
• 1 Cup Hot Sauce (Frank’s Original Hot)
• 3 to 4 tablespoons of dijon mustard
• Handful of peeled garlic
• Salt and pepper

Cooking Steps
 
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Spread the chicken tenderloins across an aluminum foil-lined baking sheet and cook in the oven for 10-15 minutes (or less - keep an eye on them).
While your chicken is in the oven, mix the coconut milk, hot sauce, dijon mustard, and garlic in a food processor or blender.
After a few seconds of blending, transfer the sauce to a large skillet and simmer on low heat until the sauce is warmed through.
Once the chicken is fully cooked, transfer them into the skillet with the sauce and toss around until all of the chicken is coated evenly with the hot sauce. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Serve with celery or sliced avocado!

Creamy Chocolate Fudgcicles

(originally from: http://chocolatecoveredkatie.com/2011/08/11/creamy-chocolate-fudgsicles/)

Ingredients

(makes 5-6 pops)
2 T cocoa powder
1/2 cup canned coconut milk
2 small, very-ripe bananas (200g)
scant 1/16 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract


Instructions

Combine all items in a blender. Pour into popsicle molds and freeze. Easy, right? As I said, the hardest part is waiting for them to freeze! A good way to remove pops is to run the popsicle mold under room-temp water for about 15 seconds, then gently twist. And the proper way to eat the pops is with chocolate dripping down your face.