new Website

HIIIII

Just converted the blogspot to an actual website !

 Go to taysteofpaleo.com
!!!

Korean CrockPot Beef with Simple Slaw

 I had this Korean Beef recipe when I took a trip to Grand Junction with the family. It is awesome! super flavorful and full of spice and tang.   This isn't necessary a paleo recipe but there are a lot of variations you can take with this recipe.   I served this with a light simple slaw that my other Aunt always makes.  It's important to pair this dish with something light to balance out the strong spice of the beef.   
Usually when making a chuck roast or pot roast for myself I NEVER finish it all.  But with this recipe I ate the entire thing over a course of a week.   Not only did I serve with the slaw but I also paired with Spaghetti squash and raw kale.

Ingredients For the Korean Beef

• 2-3 lbs beef chuck roast
• 1/2 bottle (10 oz) low sodium soy sauce
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar -(Necessary to balance the soy sauce, you could subst Coconut Cane Sugar)
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 Tbsp ginger, grated - I used the already prepared ginger
• 3 Tbsp rice vinegar
• 1 Tbsp dark sesame oil
• 1 Tbsp vegetable or olive oil
• 2 Tbsp sriracha
• 1/2 -1 cup water

 

Ingredients For the Simple Slaw

•  1 bag of prepared slaw
• 1/2 bunch of cilantro (ribboned)
• 1/2 Red onion sliced thinly
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Good serving of Sea Salt
• Pepper

Instructions

1. To make the Korean beef,  spray your slow cooker crock with non-stick cooking spray and add the beef.
2. Whisk soy sauce, sugar, and vinegar with the garlic, ginger, sriracha, and oils.
3. Pour over the beef in the crock pot and add water.
4. Cook on low for 8 hours.
5. For the slaw dice cilantro thinly and add prepared slaw and onion. Combine with just enough oil to mix ingredients (maybe 2-3 TB).  Dress with a good amount of salt and pepper to taste. Simple!

 

Paleo Brussel Sprout Pancetta and Kale Slaw

This is a new rendition of my favorite Brussel Sprout Recipe.   By chopping the Brussels sprouts and kale into small chunky ribbons it allows for a fast cooked meal.  I love the pancetta and nutty pecan combo.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup crushed pecans
• 8 ounce package Pancetta
• 8 + ounces Brussels sprouts
• 1 small bunch Kale
• 2-3 garlic cloves- minced                                  
• 1/2 to 1 small Granny Smith Apple
• 6 TB olive Oil
• 3 TB champagne vinegar
• 1/2 tsp Dijon Mustard
• salt
• pepper
• Pecorino or Parm Cheese (optional)

Directions

Chop pancetta into bite size pieces.  Saute pancetta with a drizzle of olive oil until nice and crispy.  I added 2 minced garlic cloves towards end of cooking so that they don't burn.   Remove pancetta and set aside.


Wash and pat dry the Brussels sprouts and kale. Cut the Brussels sprouts in half lengthwise, through the stem. Using a food processor chop Brussels sprouts till desired consistency. Mine were still a bit chunky.

 Remove the tough stems from the kale leaves and discard. Stack the leaves up on top of one another and cut across the stem so it yields a similar shape to the shaved Brussels sprouts or place in food processor as well.


Add brussels sprouts and kale back to saute pan. Cook down on the stove top untill crispy and golden.  Again, towards the end I added 1 more minced garlic clove and extra olive oil. Be sure to season with a generous amount of salt.

While brussels sprouts and kale cook down chop the pecans, and then spread them out on a pan and roast in the oven until golden, 5 ish minutes. * I know this sounds ridiculous but the nutty flavor of the roasted pecans is key to this recipe.

Cut the sides of the apple off and cut into small bites.

To make the vinaigrette combine the olive oil, vinegar, Dijon mustard and some salt and pepper in a bowl, whisking together until lightly emulsified.

 To serve, mix the cooked Brussels sprouts, kale and remaining pancetta and apple together well in a large salad bowl. Season with salt n pepper.  Lightly dress with the champagne vinaigrette, and then I  topped mine with shaved Pecorino and the chopped toasted pecans.

Parsnip Puree

  

This recipe is decadent to say the least.  If you are interested in trying something similar to mashed potatoes and are sick of cauliflower-- this might help!  The parsnips are kind of sweet but come out smooth and creamy. Obviously this recipe contains a lot of dairy so if you are trying strict paleo your screwed.  If I had to make this over I would try and add less cream!

 

Ingredients

• 1 pound parsnips, peeled and sliced
• Salt
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 cup milk
• tsp ish of thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 1/2 stick butter
• Freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Put parsnips in pot, season with salt add bay leaf, thyme and garlic--cover with milk and cream. Place over medium heat and bring to a simmer. Cook until tender - the tip of a paring knife should easily go through without resistance.

Remove bay lead and place parsnips in a food processor with butter, or extra-virgin olive oil and a couple of tablespoons of reserved cooking liquid. Begin to process and add left over cream mixture. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and puree until very smooth.

Perfect Paleo Fried Chicken

 

I’m lucky enough to have a guest cook!  Stefanie Meck is a longtime friend who kept telling me about her bomb-ass paleo fried chicken! So we decided to make a day of it and try it out.

 The girl is definitely right! If you are craving some homegrown goodness this is the closest thing to fried chicken. She made sure she took her time and cooked each piece to perfection! They looked just like Chik-fil-A and tasted so so goooooood!!!! I’m obsessed.  

 Not only am I obsessed with this recipe but I love this girl. It was a nice reminder of how important it is to immerse yourself with those who love and cherish you... and to enjoy the “small” things in life. I spent over 4 hours at the Meck home cooking fried chicken.... and loving every second.  We talked and laughed and truly enjoyed ourselves the entire time.  When was the last time you did anything similar?

 Life can be so fast-paced and there are so many unrealistic expectations I feel sometimes can be associated with the CF community. Don’t get me wrong, Crossfit has saved me, in more ways that one ... but just like anyone else, the expectations of living up to a standard are often unrealistic.

 Why not praise people for their work, effort, dedication and perseverance - or for their ability to go against the norm.  To consciously make the choice to live a better life. That is HUGE! That is the old CF. 

 CrossFit becoming more mainstream freaks me out. I pray douchebags won’t come piling into the CF community, sporting bro tanks and doing bicepcurls....

But I do feel blessed to be part of Evolve. They have an embedded loyalty to old school Crossfit. The box is filled with camaraderie, intensity, support, accountability and acceptance. The ingredients are healthy and combine for one hell of a recipe when it all comes together.  They genuinely want to inspire each person there ---- I  love being in an environment where the main purpose is to share something enjoyable with others. 

 I absolutely LOVED Hamming it up while cooking with this passionate and vibrant couple. 

 

Ingredients

• Chicken Breast strips; 2 packages
• Coconut flour
• Coconut oil
• Eggs
• Salt
• Paprika
• Cayenne

* serve with paleo ranch or hot sauce!

Directions

Start out by rinsing the chicken and patting dry. This allows the breading to stick to the chicken better.

 

Next, make two separate bowls.   In one, whisk 4 eggs and put the coconut flour mixture in the other. 

 

The flour mixture is approximately 2 cups of the coconut flour, a heaping handful of salt- Maybe 3 TB worth.  Also add about 1-2 tsp each of cayenne, paprika and pepper.  Mix well

Next, dredge the chicken. Dip the chicken in the flour, then egg, then back in flour.  Stef made sure this step was perfect.

Stef used a cast iron skillet. If you don’t have one just make sure it is something sturdy that won’t tip or fall.

 

Add a big scoop of the coconut oil to the pan and heat until it reaches around 350 degrees.

A good rule of thumb to test the heat is drop a small piece of flour in the hot oil.  If it loses control, turn down the heat. You want it to be as close to the perfect temperature, which you’ll know you’ve reached when it immediately bubbles and fizzes. 

Once the right temperature is reached, cook 1 piece of chicken to make sure the level of oil is covering just a little bit over half of the chicken. You don’t want to submerge it in the oil!

Carefully add pieces of chicken to the pan, making sure not to crowd them.  Once golden brown, flip and let the other side cook until golden as well....

 

Share with close friends over laughs, add a healthy dose of Hamm’s and whiskey if you’re health-conscious.

 

Paleo Ranch Dressing

I think this is pretty darn close to ranch dressing.  I love dill so I added extra dill to the sauce.   By
itself it wasn't my fav but once I dipped It in avocado and salmon it was awesome !

I made a salmon salad with the ranch, dill and my favorite toppings.   The ranch isn't as thick as a regular ranch sauce but try it out!

Paleo Ranch Dressing 

1 cup olive oil

1 cup Coconut Milk - I only used the cream part 

1 1/2 T  red wine vinegar

1 1/2 T dijon mustard

2 t Garlic Powder

1 t Onion Powder

1 t Chives

3 T Lemon Juice

1 t Parsley dried

2-3 sprigs fresh dill pull stem off

1/2 tsp Sea Salt 

1/2 tsp pepper 

Directions 

Blend all ingredients in blender.  I had let my food processor run for a few minutes!  If your tasting too much coconut try adding more vinegar, Dijon or dill.  You might need to mess with it -

Beef Cabbage Rolls

Thanks to my roomie Susan for sharing this recipe.   Her mom made a family recipe book with her great grandmas recipes.   This is one of Susan's faves and definitely mine too.    I cooked this in the oven for over 2 hours which made it super tender and delicious.  If I had to do this over again I would try cooking it in the crock pot and adding chicken stock.

Ingredients 

• 1 lb beef 
• 1/4  + cup chopped onion 
• 1 t garlic powder 
• 1 t dried basil
• 1/4 cup Parmesan (optional )
• 1 egg 
• Salt n pepper ( add more salt if not using parm) 
• 1 or 2 heads cabbage . Recommend green kind 
• 1 28 oz can tomatoes crushed 
• Additional  parm cheese 

* be sure to de-stem the cabbage.  The core is too thick to cook down. 
 

Directions 

In a large mixing bowl, combine the raw ground beef, egg,  garlic, basil, Parmesan, onion, salt, black pepper. Mix very well.  Set aside. 

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Carefully lower the head of cabbage into the water. As the cabbage simmers, the leaves will start to loosen and can be pulled off with a pair of tongs. As each cabbage leaf comes loose, remove it from the simmering water.  This only takes a few minutes.



So cute all bundled up!



 

When the cabbage leaves are ready, divide the beef mixture into little loaves.  Place the meat at the bottom of the cabbage leaf and roll up, folding in the sides as you roll.  Just bundle em up! 

Place cabbage rolls in a deep roasting pan cover with crushed tomatoes and additional cheese. This is where I should of added chicken stock or water to help steam the cabbage more.

Cover and bake in a 350 degree F. oven for 1 hour 15 minutes. Remove cover or tinfoil and cook an additional hour till tender!  Total time of over 2 hrs.

Spicy Chicken Paleo Tacos

Thank you Trisha Sims for the recipe idea !!! Even my picky roommates liked it !

 

Crockpot Chicken

• 1 package thin chicken breasts 
• Taco seasoning packet 
• Cup or so of water or chicken stock 
• Half jar of salsa ( El Pinto Green Chile Salsa)
• 2 diced tomatoes

Spicy Paleo Rice 

• 1 head cauliflower - Grated mine on a cheese grater-
• 1 small can of green chile's 
• 1 cup stock. Or left over juices from crock pot !
• half package of taco seasoning

Simple Guac

• 1 avocado -mushed  
• juice of 1 lime
• handful of chopped cilantro
• garlic-salt to taste

For the crock pot chicken I bought thin chicken breasts that would cook up easy.   I dumped in the taco seasoning and half a Jar of my favorite salsa and extra tomatoes.   I didn't have any chicken stock so i just filled up the pot with water till it barely covered the chicken.   I had my crock pot on high for around 4-5 hours!

CrockPot Chicken

Cauliflower Rice

Heat your pan over medium-high heat, add olive oil and diced green chilies. Saute for 5 minutes.
Add riced cauliflower, add chicken stock or left over crock pot goodness. Add half package of taco seasoning.
 Reduce heat to low, cover, and allow to simmer 20 minutes or until all the liquid has reduced. 

I probably cooked my cauliflower for 10 minutes.   I wanted to make sure that mine was still crunchy- so be hesitant in how much liquid you add to the pan. 

I wrapped my tacos in iceburg lettuce and topped with simple guac and fresh cilantro!

Some people will wrap their left over herbs in a damp towel.  I keep mine usually in the fridge within a cup full of water-  I find they last a lot longer-

 

Ale-Braised Short Ribs

 

Ingredients:

• 3-4 lb. bone-in beef short ribs, cut into 3-inch pieces
• Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
• 2 small yellow onions, thinly sliced
• 3 garlic cloves, mashed ( just take out whole garlic cloves smash with knife- no need to cut and dice)
• 1 - 2 butternut squash, peeled and cut into chunks ( to make the butternut squash easier to work with I popped mine in the microwave for a few minutes to warm it up)
• 1 can  diced plum tomatoes, with juice
• 1 bottle of ale beer ( I know not paleo!) 
• 1/4 cup water or stock

Directions:

Brown the short ribs
Preheat a broiler. Generously season the ribs on all sides with salt and pepper.  Broil the ribs, turning once, until well browned, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer the ribs to a slow cooker.

Cook the short ribs
Scatter the onions and garlic over the ribs. Add the squash. Pour in the tomatoes with their juice along with the ale.  I cooked mine throughout the night on low for 7 to 8 hours!

I love the butternut squash chunks!

 

Potato-less Potato Salad

Ingredients

• 2 heads of cauliflower
• 1/2 dozen eggs, hard-boiled and diced
• 1/2 a medium sized red onion or green onion, finely diced
• 5 celery stalks, finely diced
• Baby dill pickles, diced
• 2 Tablespoon or more of whole grain mustard ( Honestly I prob used 4 TB or more)
• About 3/4 or less  cup of Paleo Mayo
• Handful of chopped FRESH dill

Paleo Mayo

• 1 whole egg
• 2 egg yolks
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 tsp. Dijon mustard
• 1  1/2 cups of pure olive oil or walnut oil
• 1 to 2 tablespoons melted bacon grease

 

 

 

Directions Mayo

In a blender, add the eggs, lemon juice, and mustard and blend together well – leave the

blender running and slowly drizzle the oil. Do not dump all the oil in quickly and give up.

When the mixture begins to emulsify or thicken, only then can you be a bit faster about

pouring in the olive oil but still take your time. Turn the blender off once all the olive oil is

in and the mayonnaise is thickened. Add the salt and pepper and mix well or blend again for another few seconds.

 

Directions for Paleo Potato Salad

You can steam or boil your cauliflower, I just boiled mine. You want the cauliflower to be soft but not mushy. Drain the cauliflower well and pat dry with paper towels. Crumble the cauliflower into a large mixing bowl, add all of the remaining ingredients including the mayo and mustard, mix well. Either eat right away or let chill for a couple of hours before serving!

Apple, Currants and Sunflower Seed Kale Salad

I love kale! I'm always trying to find new ways to incorporate kale into my diet. Kale is pumped with phytochemicals and antioxidants. 

Kale has a higher level of antioxidants than spinach.  These antioxidants along with many other benefits can prevent or slow the oxidative damage of our body.  They enhance the immune system and slow down the aging process.

Kale is also high in sulfur another cancer-fighting compound. When Kale is chopped, cooked or chewed, sulforaphane is formed from the sulfur. Sulforaphane helps the liver to stimulate detoxification and remove free radicals. 

 I had been running into the idea of Sulforaphane a lot lately and how it is beneficial in the fight against breast cancer.   Given its breast cancer awareness month - read this article!  That's my tip for the day-healing foods!


 
But this is a recipe that my aunt lisa always makes. It's freaking goood! Probably one of my top fav Kale recipes. 



The texture of kale is sometimes hard to get use to.  So another way to prepare kale is to massage it with salt. Salt draws moisture out of things, and salt alone is enough to soften the toughest of raw kale leaves. By massaging the kale with the salt it renders a softened texture which is easier to chew. Be sure to only use the 1 tsp of salt I wouldn't recommend much more than that. 

Ingredients

• 2 bunches of kale
• 1 small red onion diced
• 1 small light red apple diced
• 1/3 + cup currants
• 1/3 + cup sunflower seeds
• small package of Raw Gorgonzola Cheese- broken into chunks - The raw Gorgonzola I found at whole foods is pretty salty tasting- I ended up going with an organic Gorgonzola instead bc this salad is already salty
• 2 tablespoons apple cider viniger
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tsp of salt

Directions

De-stem kale by pulling leaves away from the stems. Wash leaves, spin or pat dry. Slice kale  into ribbons. Put kale in a large mixing bowl and add salt. Massage salt into kale with your hands for 2 minutes.

To toast sunflower seeds, put in a dry skillet over low to medium heat and stir constantly for a few minutes until they change color and give off a nutty aroma.

Stir onion, currants, apple and toasted seeds into kale. Dress with oil and vinegar and add the Gorgonzola. Taste for salt and vinegar, adding more if necessary.  This salad will keep for several days and still be great! 

Salmon With Charmoula Sauce

I was lucky enough to experiment with this sauce at my aunts house in Minnesota.
She has a beautiful kitchen. Definitely one of those kitchens that tends to bring
the whole family together. We made this new sauce and topped it on grilled
chicken and grilled salmon.
Charmoula sauce is cilantro and parsley based. The color is not the most appetizing
but I thought it was incredible tasting. I love cilantro, garlic and lemon so the combo of
these is fresh alive and tart. I really encourage this recipe!

I literally made this in 15 minutes. I packaged my salmon up in parchment tossed the ingredients in my crappy blender and just barely cooked my salmon....  I love it super flaky!

Charmoula Sauce

• 4 cloves garlic
• ½ cup cilantro or more
• ½ cup parsley (Italian) leaves
• 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (no store bought!)
• 1 ½ teaspoon paprika
• ¾ teaspoon cumin( i used more-so 1/2tsp)
• ¼ teaspoon cayenne
• ½ cup of extra virgin olive oil

With the motor of a food processor or food blender running, drop in the cloves one
at a time till minced. Then add the cilantro, parsley, lemon juice paprika,
cumin and cayenne till pureed then slowly add the olive oil.

   I would recommend waiting on adding salt till the end. And I would recommend adding more of these ingredients to create a larger batch.  

You might need to play around with the result. If you dont like it as tart then add less lemon juice and more oil and cilantro/parsley.  If you need more garlic or spice....... just slowly keep adding more to it till you find your happy place. 

 Marinate the fish with EVOO salt n pepper, and garlic and lemon.



Preheat oven to 400. Salt n pepper the salmon and place in parchment paper. I added lemon and EVOO then pulled up all 4 sides to make a pocket... this will make the steaming effect.   I cooked mine for maybe 12 minutes. The recommended amount is 20 or so minutes.

If you have any left overs of the charmoula sauce SAVE IT! It's awesome on thick avocado chunks. 

 

  

Honey Tamarind Orange Chicken

 

This recipe was fun for me because I was able to work with two different ingredients that
I have never used before. I used a tamarind paste and coconut palm sugar.

The other day while aimlessly walking through whole foods and stealing chocolate covered
raisins, I ran across coconut palm sugar. After reviewing a few cites on it I thought I
would try and incorporate it into a few recipes.

What I found with coconut palm sugar is that coconut PALM sugar, is not from the actual
coconut. It is simply the coconut palm sap (nectar) from the coconut palm flowers, boiled,
dried, and pulverized into granules. It's not processed other than boiling and drying.
Coconut palm sugar seems to be similar to maple sugar, which is simply boiled, dried and
granulated maple syrup.

Tamarind is the fruit of a tropical evergreen tree.  It produces pods filled with dark brown,
seed-laced, bittersweet pulp. It is the pulp that is consumed. The pulp is very tangy and
very sweet. Even though this is apart of the legume family – I theorize that a caveman
would have noticed a tree filled with sweet nectar pods and probably would have really
enjoyed it!  But it is a legume so it technically isn’t paleo.

This recipe came from an episode I saw on FoodNetwork...with a few changes to make it more Paleo.   It reminded me of a modern tangy Caribbean BBQ sauce.  I find that I am not a fan of that many Paleo BBQ sauces..... So if your wanting something different and taste bud challenging... try it out!

But if I had to make this again I would have chose using wing style chicken or a basic chicken breast... my pieces of chicken were too big and it annoyed me.  

Ingredients

• Chicken Wings/choice of chicken cut
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 1/4 cup Coconut Palm Sugar
• 1 tablespoon ground allspice 
• 2 teaspoons ground chile
• 2 teaspoons ground black pepper
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt

Honey-Tamarind  Sauce

• 1 cup orange juice
• 1/4 cup clover honey
• 1/4 cup ketchup
• 1/4 cup tamarind concentrate
• 1-inch of smaller piece ginger, thinly sliced
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar( optional)

Directions

For the jerk chicken wings- Brush the chicken with canola oil. Combine the sugar,
allspice, Chile, black pepper and salt. Generously coat the chicken with the spice mix.
Heat the grill to medium heat. Place the chicken on the grill over medium
heat, and cook until golden browned and crisp, about 5 minutes. Cover the grill. Grill until
the chicken is brown and crisp and just cooked through, about 15-20 minutes. Remove from
grill and place the chicken in a large bowl.

Meanwhile, for the honey-tamarind sauce- Combine 1/2 cup water, the orange juice,
honey, ketchup, tamarind and ginger in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce the
heat to medium and cook until slightly thick, about 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and
remove and discard the ginger. Season with salt and pepper. Whisk in the vinegar. Keep
warm.

Add the honey-tamarind sauce to the bowl of chicken and toss to coat. Sprinkle
with salt and transfer to a platter.

Stuffed Almond Butter Banana and Cacao Butter French Paleo Toast

Yummmmmy!!  This is one of my fat-kid recipes turned paleo.   I use to always make a french toast stuffed with peanut butter and bananas.   So I tried making it paleo. I was really happy with the results. And I made my first batch of paleo almond bread and it was a success! If you do use this recipe I would recommend doubling the amounts as well as trying to cut the bread slices thin.  Mine were too thick when I made the french toast.  

I also used Artisana's cacao butter on a few samples.  BOMB stuff. Kind of hard to spread though but it did add just the right amount of chocolate to the stuffed french toast.

Ingredients

       Paleo Almond Bread

 1 cup Almond flour

 1  1/3 cup Almond butter

3 TB Olive oil

3 Eggs

1 cap full of Almond extract

 3/4 tsp Baking soda

   Stuffed French Toast

 Almond Butter- Which ever flavor

1 egg

Orange juice

Left over coffee

Cacao butter

Bananas

Tri-Berries organic frozen

Directions

         Paleo Almond Bread

 

 Combine all ingredients. Make sure to stir for a smooth consistency. Depending on the type of almond butter you might need to add a bit of water to just even it out.  You will want the consistency to be a little bit thicker that a pancake mix.  When I made this it wasn't nearly enough so I would recommend doubling the size.  Bake in oven at 350 for 30 minutes. 

 

 

        Stuffed Almond Butter, Banana and Cacao Butter French Toast

Slice almond bread into sandwich  size portions. Spread almond butter and Cacao butter on one side of the bread. On the other side add sliced bananas.   Combine both sides to make a sandwich.

 

Combine an egg with lil bit of orange juice and a splash coffee. Stir mixture and then place the french toast into the mixture and let soak for 30 seconds or until soggy.  

 

Over medium heat place french toast in pan and cook until golden brown. 

 

At this point I wanted to make it rain with powdered sugar... but I restrained and decided to top with a some berries.  

 

 

I bough a bag of organic frozen tri-berries and heated on top of the stove till they were just barely cooked down.  Top the stuffed french toast with the berries and serve!