Spiced Orange Date Balls

Little globes of spiced holiday joy! ...Can I entice you further?  I made these on a whim from an inspiration to use the delicious sun-ripened oranges I got as a thank-you for climbing my neighbor's orange tree to help her get them down before the frost. (Apparently Tucson has about three days of frost a year. Who knew?)

Anyway - please make these. Everyone will love them, and no will will ask where the flour, added sugar, etc are. Bonus - these are paleo and vegan! Perfect for any party.... aaand they freeze well! Seriously. My new favorite dessert/snack/powerfood/littlemorselofhappiness.

Ingredients:

2c pitted dates (any variety)

3/4c shredded coconut, plus 1c for rolling

1c almond flour

1/4c chopped pecans

zest and juice from one small orange, or half a large (naval) orange

1/2 tsp allspice

Pulse everything in a food processor or heavy-duty blender (aka vitamix) until the consistency you like. I like leaving in a few coarse bits :)

Spoon out a little bit and roll in shredded coconut until its a ball-shape. I like little bite-size pieces myself....so I can eat more of them! Omnomnom ^_^

Happy Holidays!!!

Blackstrap Waffles

EHRMEGERD, WERFLS.

*ahem*

I mean, wow I forgot how much I love waffles!
Mmmmmmm.......


Ok back from delicious reverie. 
I made them with two eggs initially, then needed to add a third to compensate for the lack of gluten. They came out fantastic!

Turn your waffle iron on high.

Into a bowl: 3 jumbo eggs (I used duck eggs), 1-2tbsp butter, 1tsp vanilla, 2tbsp blackstrap molasses (just a hint of sweet and good for you too!) Blend. 
Add 1.5c milk of choice (I used fresh almond milk), and blend again.

Through a little sifter add 1tsp baking powder, 1/2tsp salt, 1/3c coconut flour, 1/3c almond flour, 1/3c flaxmeal (fresh grind 1/3c flax seeds). Blend again and voila!

If your iron is hot, spray with a little oil or just spoon some coconut oil onto the bottoms like I did and wipe some on the top side, too. Put a heaping 1/3c batter for each waffle, and cook for about 4-5 minutes. Peek at 4 and see how they're doing. 

If they are crumbly like my first batch, add another egg. Again- these were 3 jumbo duck eggs, so it might be more like 4 chicken eggs.

Make 6 awesome delicious waffles. So probably feeds 3.

These aren't super sweet - you could use them as pancake batter, and sweet with syrup and berries or savory with smoked salmon and capers! 

Imagination is King. 

(Breakfast this morning - with pure maple syrup and a little ginger powder)

Carrot Ginger Coconut Soup

Carrot Ginger Coconut Soup

This soup is heavenly - like velvet on the tongue. It could easily be adapted into a cold custard with the addition of an egg yolk or two and sweetener to taste, it's that good.

The roasted garlic is the key to the flavor depth - I tried making it with fresh garlic cloves and, while delicious, lacked the Symphony in my mouth that the first batch created.

This was a serendipitous soup, created from the happened roasted things of a happy Sunday roasting day - a 'by-product' of sorts to fill the oven and avoid wasted energy while I roasted a chicken, etc. for the week. I'd suggest a similar approach...especially since I roasted the carrots and sweet potatoes in the leftover chicken drippings! :gasp:  I'm sure that had Nothing to do with the scrumptious flavor at all.... ;)

Ingredients: (feeds 3-4)

2 roasted sweet potatoes -- no skin, roasted with olive oil, garlic powder (1tsp), cinnamon (1tsp), and ground cloves (1/2tsp), ground nutmeg (dash)

two roasted carrots

2 cloves roasted garlic (mmm....maybe 3...)

one piece ginger (1 inch)

one can coconut milk 

one small apple (no core, and no skin if your blender isn't powerful)

1/2 tsp good salt

1/8 tsp ground cloves or allspice

Blend until smooth then heat until gently simmering. 

For a savory side dish, serve as is or with a little cracked pepper on top (pretty presentation!)

For a sweeter treat, add a dollop of coconut cream and a drizzle of good maple syrup!

*For custard: add 1 egg yolk while blending, heat to a simmer, add sweetener at that time to taste (try 2 tbsp maple syrup) and cool in individual custard cups

Did I mention...

This is SO GOOD

Zucchini Pancakes

These are Far more delicious than I would have imagined, though I shouldn't have doubted since they're an adaption from my Nonna's recipe. 

I substituted pistachio flour for traditional wheat flour, and it's a stunning culinary combination. I swear these are mom approved, kid approved, boyfriend approved, roommate approved...the whole 9 yards!

True to form, these are easy peasy and a snap to make - or make them ahead and pop into a skillet (or the microwave) for a hearty healthy breakfast in seconds! The recipe is easily halved or doubled - as written it makes about 8 hand-sized pancakes.

Ingredients:
3c Grated zucchini
4 eggs
1/2c nut flour - I used pistachio!
1/4c dried parsley (1/2 if fresh)
1 tsp salt (**omit if nuts were salted)
1/8 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp garlic powder

Heat up your skillet to pancake temperature - on my stove that's about a #4, or medium-low.
Use the best eggs you can find - farm raised eggs or duck eggs just taste so much better! Beat the eggs with the nut flour and spices. Squeeze all the water from the zucchini and mix it into the egg batter. 
Once a drop of water dances across your skillet you're ready to go!
Drop the batter by spoonfuls and flatten them out a bit so the cook through evenly. Flip after 3-4 minutes to  brown on both sides and enjoy!!

Make em big, make em small...either way they're freakin' delicious. 

(I may have eaten the whole batch in a day...)

Confessions of a Non-Baker....and Paleo Pancakes

I...am not a baker. I can bake a few (non-paleo) things very well - I have "famous" chocolate chip cookies, for instance. But I've been working from the same recipe since I was 10, and for someone who hates stagnation and doing the same thing more than once....it's not a practice I usually follow. 

Baking requires patience. Perfection. Balance. Chemistry. Exact numbers and temperatures and times. This can be a beautiful thing and I admire all who can pop out a souffle or a Baked Alaska. Alas, I am not one of them.

I am a cook. Spontaneous. Heat of the moment. Passion and Emotion. There are no mistakes - nothing a little more liquid or a longer cooking time can't fix. I love that I can forage for Paleo things at my mom's house - and whip up something like frozen shrimp with frozen green beans, frozen basil, and powdered garlic in canned coconut milk. And it is unreasonably delicious.

That said - I have been craving, and I mean CRAVING pancakes.  I don't like to bake. I don't like to make paleo versions of non-paleo foods. But since my skin breaks out in a rash at the mere mention of Denny's...going out for a fat stack of pancakes just isn't an option.


So here is my attempt at Paleo Pancakes. Wish me Luck.
*Sourced with modifications from http://paleopancakes.co/paleo-pancakes-fluffy-coconut-flour-pancakes 

Ingredients:
4 eggs, room temperature, separated.  (I use Omega-3 eggs, and the closest to pastured I can afford)
1 & 1/4 cup coconut milk, full fat of course. (Of note - "light" is just mixed with water, always buy the full fat kind and water it down if you want to save $$$!)
2 tsp vanilla extract (or you could infuse coconut milk with 1/2 a vanilla bean)
2 tbsp honey
3/4 cup coconut flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
Cooking fat - coconut oil is easy, but ghee (clarified butter) would be delicious
Maple syrup and fruit for toppings!


Separate the eggs. Whip the whites until they form peaks. In a separate bowl - beat the yolks until smooth and blend in the coconut milk, vanilla, and honey. 


In a third bowl, mix the dry ingredients together. 
Add the wet to the dry, mix gently until no lumps, then fold in the whites until well blended. 
My Papa always told me the secret to fluffy things is to mix thoroughly - but not too hard and don't take your time about it. A light, quick hand does the trick!
While your batter is setting up:
Get your pan or griddle nice and hot - about medium high, or 6-7. 

Let the batter set for 5-10 minutes - this is important to let the baking powder do its job!
Grease your skillet well. 
Ladle the batter in small amounts - for ~ 3" diameter 'cakes. Big pancakes won't firm up with this batter.
Wait to flip until the edges look dry and are lifting up from the pan. 
Flip, let them cook another few minutes so they are done. 
Viola! 

And the verdict is....DELICIOUS!

Steak with Apple-Avocado Salad

I splurged on one quality grass-fed ribeye steak from whole foods - and let me tell you it was So worth it! Amazing. It spoke for itself and our only accoutrement were sautéed peppers and onions, and slices of apples and avocado. 

I believe in buying quality - instead of buying large quantities of poor quality food, buy less of better food. One grass-fed ribeye steak with little sides, instead of 2 cheap conventional cuts, soda, processed sides such as french fries, and expensive sauces etc.
Let the food speak for itself!

Ingredients: feeds 2
- Ribeye steak, best quality you can afford. Allow 6-8oz per person raw.
- 1 sweet onion, 1 bell pepper, 1 avocado, 1 apple

Heat a heavy skillet to med-hi (7 out of 10)
Add a tablespoon of oil (vegetable or olive) and the steak right away so the oil is not allowed to smoke
Sprinkle steak with a little garlic salt

Flip every minute, for a total of about 10 minutes for a medium steak. 
Put the steak on a plate and let it rest. 
Do Not poke, prick, or cut the steak until it has rested for 5 minutes! The steak must be allowed to rest and redistribute its juices, or else you will end up with a dry and chewy steak.


Meanwhile, heat another skillet or pot to medium and add sliced onion and pepper with a little olive oil. Stir often until onion is translucent.

Slice the apple and avocado into similar shapes and gently toss together. No dressing is needed if the apple is juicy and the avocado is creamy as they should be!