Mixed Berry Breakfast Cobbler

I bought some cranberries to put in a fruit salad but them decided it would add too much tartness to the salad. I also had some blackberries that needed to be eaten before they went bad so I decided to try to make a berry cobbler.

Mixed Berry Cobbler

Filling Mixture:
3 cups of fresh berries (mix and match to preference)
2 tbsp honey
1/4 cup coconut milk
1 tsp vanilla
2 tbsp tapioca flour
1/4 tsp salt

Crust Mixture:
2 tbsp coconut oil (melted) 
1 cup almond meal
1/4 cup coconut meal
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 egg
1/4 cup crushed nuts (almond or other nut to add texture)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a pie plate (I used coconut oil). Mix berries or fruit, honey, vanilla, and coconut milk. Place mixture in greased pie plate. Melt coconut oil in bowl. Add almond meal, cinnamon, salt, crushed nuts and egg. Crumbly crust mixture over top of filling. Cook for about 35 minutes or until crust is golden brown.

Let cool and serve with coconut milk or almond milk drizzled over it!

Paleo Banana Breakfas Cookies

I had bananas that had become to ripe for me to eat so I searched for possible recipes to try. I had found breakfast cookies before starting the paleo lifestyle and was intrigued by the idea of a breakfast cookie I could make ahead of time. It would be a quick, easy breakfast that I could ask grab and eat on the go. This recipe was adapted from The Preppy Paleo at http://www.preppypaleo.com/2013/03/paleo-banana-breakfast-cookies.html

Paleo Banana Breakfast Cookies

2 ripe bananas, mashed
1/2 cup raw almond butter or other nut butter
1 egg
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. All-Spice
1-2 cups total mix-ins (coconut, nuts, dates, dried fruit, cocoa nibs, chocolate chips, etc)

Preheat oven to 350. Combine all ingredients until well blended. Drop by tbs. onto a greased or Silpat-lined baking sheets. Bake for 12 minutes or until golden brown on the bottom.

These will spread a bit more than traditional cookies, so leave sufficient space between your cookies.

Spicy Chucar Pumpkin Soup

Fall is upon us! Every corner you turn there are pumpkins and squash. I had tried to make some pumpkin cookies that I could use as a quick snack when I was on the move (still working on that recipe) and ended up with some extra pumpkin. I also have some chucar my husband had shot. (pictured below)

Most of the soup recipes I found called for chicken stock. I figured I could use the chucar to make my own stock. I had my husband taste it to see what he thought. He isn't a huge pumpkin pie fan, so suggested I add his favorite spice, jerk chicken seasoning. Since I was contemplating going spicy (and after I tried a small sample he made) I decided it was a great fit!


Spicy Chucar Pumpkin Soup

4 cups of Stock (I made chucar stock but will use chicken next time.)
1 cup chopped chicken
1 can Pumpkin puree
2 gloves of garlic
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp jerk chicken seasoning (or more if you like more bite.)
1/2 cup almond milk
1/2 cup coconut milk

Top with almond slivers and/or unsweetened coconut!


I threw it all in the crock pot to simmer.  It was so yummy for lunch. I also added some almond slivers and unsweetened coconut. A tasty difference to the normal sweet pumpkin recipes.

Coconut Flour Pancakes

I have been looking for a pancake recipe. My husband does not like bananas so was trying to find one that didn't have bananas as an ingredient. This is the recipe I tried. I don't like the taste of consistency, so will either be adjusting the recipe or trying out different recipes.We used agave syrup instead of the traditional maple syrup and just drizzled a little on top.

http://www.foodiefiasco.com/coconut-flour-pancakes-vegangluten-freegrain-freelow-carblow-caloriehigh-protein/

Coconut Flour Pancakes (Gluten Free/Grain Free/Low Carb/Low Calorie/High Protein)

Rating: 5

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 15 minutes

Yield: 1 serving (for you!)

Serving Size: 1 recipe

Calories per serving: 145

Fat per serving: 5 grams

Ingredients

• * 2 egg whites
• * 1/4 cup coconut flour
• * 1/2 cup almond milk
• * 1 teaspoon vanilla
• * 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• * 1/8 teaspoon salt
• * 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
• * stevia  (I used Honey.)
• 
  

Instructions

1. Combine all ingredients and stir until thoroughly combined. (Be patient as this may take a few minutes.) Heat a greased nonstick skillet over medium high heat for a minute or two. (You want the pan to be completely pre-heated so the first pancakes cooks correctly.) Pour desired amount of batter onto skillet (recommend two tablespoons to make medium-sized pancakes), and cook until golden, a few minutes on each side. Transfer to a plate and repeat with remaining batter, re-greasing (or spraying with cooking spray) between each pancake. Top at will and devour!

Lemon Bars

We have been trying out some paleo treats and found this recipe for lemon bars. My husband loved it. It has a very strong lemon flavor (he loves water with a squeeze of lemon juice plus other kinds of citrus flavored foods, which I do not.) I think I might like it better if some coconut was mixed into the filling. Something to try in the future.

http://popularpaleo.com/2013/07/08/lemon-bars/

Ingredients:
CRUST
1 cup almonds
1 cup pecans
1/4 cup medjool dates (about 6 of the regular size)
1/4 cup coconut oil
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp Celtic sea salt
1 egg

FILLING
the juice from 4 large lemons (approx. 3/4 cup)
1 tsp lemon zest
8 eggs
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup raw honey
1 TBSP arrowroot flour or tapioca flour + 1/2 TBSP of hot water

Prep:
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees (Fahrenheit).
Make the crust first by dumping all of the ingredients, except for the egg, into a food processor. Let this go until it gets to a “pebbly-sand” texture—well before it turns into butter. Then add the egg and process again just until the egg is fully incorporated and the nuts break down into “coarse sand.”

Press the crust batter evenly into the bottom of an ungreased baking dish and set aside,  9 x 9 or an 8 x 8 for a thicker crust.

For the filling, combine all of the ingredients using an electric mixer or by hand with a whisk except for the last line item—the arrowroot and water.  Once the lemons, eggs and other stuff is mixed up, make a slurry using the 1/2 TBSP of hot water and tablespoon of flour. Mix the slurry into the batter and gently pour over the pressed nut crust waiting in the baking dish.

Bake this for 30 minutes in a 325 degree oven. Don’t worry if it gets a little crackly once it’s done cooking. I haven’t met a Paleo lemon bar that doesn’t do this.

As tough as it is, this needs to be cooled completely before eating. Do your best!

Non-Paleo Treat

Yesterday was Boss's Day and someone brought some chocolate zucchini bars to share. Today I decided to have  a couple (one for lunch and one for afternoon snack.) That was the worse idea. My stomach is not happy at all now. Hopefully it will just not be happy today. Will see. Shows me the effect some foods have on me that I didn't realize.

Hopefully they will be gone tomorrow and there will be no more temptation!

I have come to realize I tend to eat foods like sweets when I am frustrated. Not so much mad, but trying to deal with things in like and get worked up. Need to workout or go for a walk instead of eating non-paleo. My stomach will like me a lot more. 

Carmel Pecan Bites

We had guests over for a Norwex Party and I wanted to have some treats I could eat along with treats that I knew my guests would eat. I found this recipe and decided to try it. I used my Silk Coconut milk instead of canned (since it is what I normally buy.) The second time I made this I made more of the caramel filling since I was using an 8x8 pan and the crust was pretty thick. My husband loved it and it is definitely a recipe we will use frequently. I will continue to adjust the recipe as I keep trying things out. I didn't like the graininess of the first batch so reduced the almond meal and added some coconut flour.

http://paleomg.com/caramel-pecan-bars/

Caramel Pecan Bars

Prep time:  15 mins (1 hour to soak the dates)

Cook time:  25 mins

Total time:  40 mins

Serves: 5-6

Ingredients

For the crust

• 1.5 cups pecans
• 1/2 cup almond flour/meal 
• 1/4 cup coconut flour
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• pinch of salt
• ¼ cup Virgin Coconut Oil, melted
• 1 tablespoon Raw Honey
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 egg, whisked

For the caramel

• 12-14 medjool dates, pitted and soaked in water for an hour
• 5-6 tablespoons coconut milk
• 3 tablespoons water
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• pinch of salt

Instructions

• Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.
• Add your pecans to a food processor and blend until you get more of a meal or flour.
• Add your almond flour/meal, baking soda and powder and salt.
• Put in a large bowl. Add your melted coconut oil, raw honey and vanilla until you get a very delicious pecan butter.
• Add your egg and whisk all ingredients together.
• Grease a bread loaf pan with coconut oil and then add your crust ingredients to the pan and use a spoon to spread out evenly.
• Put in oven and bake for around 25-30 minutes or until middle is cooked completely through. Use the toothpick method to test it.
• While the crust bakes, lightly clean out your food processor, then add your dates.
• Turn on until dates have broken down. Add your coconut milk tablespoon by tablespoon to the dates while the food processor is still running. Then add your water as well. (The smoother you want your filling, the longer you will want to blend them)
• And add your vanilla extract and pinch of salt.
• Process until you get a caramel. BOOM.
• Once your crust is done baking, let cool for about 10-15 minutes.
• Top caramel over crust using a spoon to smooth out.
• Put in fridge for 30 minutes to an hour to set. Or consume right then really.
• Keep in fridge if you have leftovers!