Viva La Enchilada!!!

First I have to say that I love Mexican food but it's been a very, very long time since I have had it. I recently came across a recipe for chicken enchiladas, and I thought why not give it a try. The picture looked like a real enchilada, how bad can it be??? Well, they are real and they are good!!!! I made some changes to the recipe to make them a little easier but they are still time consuming so you will definitely need some time to put these together.

3 14.5 ounce cans of Trader Joe's Fire Roasted diced tomatoes with green chiles (this is the part I made easier) blended in a blender or food processor
1 onion, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 pounds of chicken breast or thighs ( I used chicken breast and about 2.5 pounds)
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 egg whites (I used 10 egg whites)
1/3 cup of heavy cream

1/2 cup or less of shredded Organic Raw Sharp Cheddar Cheese (from Whole Foods and it could be optional if you dont want to add cheese)

In a deep saucepan over medium heat saute onions and garlic in a few tablespoon of oil. Add the chicken and brown on each side, this should be about 2-3 minutes on each side. Add the chili powder, cumin and salt then pour in the tomato mixture. Cover the pan and bring to a simmer for about 20 minutes until the chicken is cooked. Remove the chicken from the pot and slice thinly. Reserve 1 cup of the sauce on the side then put the chicken back into the sauce and mix well.

In a bowl, whisk the egg whites and heavy cream. Heat a 10 inch skillet over medium-low heat coat the lightly with oil and add just enough egg to coat the bottom of the pan in a very thin layer. Cook for about 1 minutes then put a lid on the pan and cook for 25 more seconds. This part takes a little getting used to. You want the egg to be cook through but still pliable enough to roll. Gently slide the crepe onto a plate.

Lightly oil the bottom of 13x9 baking pan, like a Pyrex pan. Place a crepe on a plate or cutting board and fill it with about 1/3 of the chicken mixture and lightly sprinkle it with cheese. Roll the crepe and place in the baking dish. Do this until all the crepes are filled. I think I may have added too much chicken because I ended up needing an additional baking pan. If there is any chicken left over spoon it around the rolled crepes. Once all the crepes are in the pan top with reserved sauce and sprinkle with any remaining cheese. Cover the pan lightly with foil and bake 20 minutes.

These pictures are pre sauce and cheese. I forgot to take a picture of the after, but you all get the idea.

What's in season for April??

I was asked to put together a few vegetable recipes that everyone can use to accompany any protein main entree that you are eating. These are very simply and quick veggie recipes. Right now, Asparagus and Artichokes, Sweet Onions and a plethora of other veggies are in season, so eat up.

Roasted asparagus

1 bunch of asparagus

1 clove of garlic minced

Fresh ground pepper

Celtic salt ( this is a very powerful salt, you do not need a lot to get great taste from this salt)

Extra virgin olive oil

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Wash the asparagus and trim the bottoms. You can do this one of two was. 1^st hold asparagus between both hands and snap, this will break at the natural point of the asparagus or you can just cut the bottom 1 inch off. Mince the garlic and set aside. In a cookie sheet or baking dish, add the asparagus and garlic drizzle oil over stalks and add fresh ground pepper and Celtic salt to taste. Mixed together with your hands and lay out stalks so they are not on top of each other. Roast in the oven for 8 minutes until just tender.

Artichokes – When you are buying artichokes make sure all the leaves are closed and tight to the core. If they are open and the choke appears to be blooming that is a sign of age of the artichoke. Wash the artichokes and trim the base. Put in a pot and add water a little bit of salt, 1 lemon squeezed into the water then drop the lemon into the water and bring water to a boil. Cover and boil for 35-45 minutes or until the base of the choke can be pierced with a fork.  Drain the chokes and serve.

Zucchini and Cauliflower are not in season in April but you can still get some good tasting ones this time of year.

Zucchini – You can do a couple different things with zucchini. I love to grill it or you can roast it. If you want to grill zucchini, take it and cut it length wise into thin slices. Place slices into a pan and add minced garlic, pepper and salt and olive oil. Get the grill hot and lay slices on the grill. Grill about 3 minutes on each side or until you get good grill marks. The grill should be very hot before you put the zucchini on. If you want to roast zucchini, cut in half length wise, then cut into 1 inch pieces width wise. Put on a cookie sheet or baking sheet add garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper and put in a 400 degree oven for 10 minutes. The zucchini should be browned and easily pierced with a fork.

Cauliflower – Since cauliflower is such a dense vegetable you can actually make rice out of it and use that in place of grain rice. You can also mash it and use it in place of mashed potatoes.  To make cauliflower rice, first cut into small florets and steam it briefly (if you are going to use this rice in a soup or part of a dish that will need rice to simmer in it you will not steam the cauliflower at all). Take the florets and run through a food processor with the grating attachment and you will have cauliflower rice. If you want to make mashed cauliflower, cut florets and place in boiling water. Cook until you can pierce a floret with a fork. Drain cauliflower and put back in the pot, add fresh ground pepper and salt and a little bit of heavy cream and mash either by hand or with an electric mixer. Use this as a side dish to any protein.

What do you do when life hands you lemons? You make a Paleo salad dressing

Unfortunately, vinegar is not paleo. All yeast or fermented products are off the paleo which is odd because if you think about it, cave people didn't really have refrigeration and I would think all things would ferment over time. Well, what do I know! I wasn't there!! As we begin to approach spring (I think), salads become more and more popular. It's a great lunch item and easy to make and transport. People have always asked me what type of salad dressing they can use if they are eating paleo. I came up with this quick salad dressing that you can make in bulk and keep in a jar in your fridge for the week. This recipe using the lemon's acidity to replace the vinegar. I recommend using Meyer's lemons( I can write an entire blog on the goodness of these lemons) if you can find them but regular lemons work just fine.

Get a measuring cup, I have a plastic 2 cup one or you can use a glass one, you just need something you can see through.Take the juice of two lemons (make sure you roll the lemons before you try and juice them, this will release the juice for the pulp). Two lemons should yield about a 1/2 cup of juice if the lemons are on the bigger side. Add 1/4 of a cup of flax oil and a 1/2 of cup of really good olive oil. Pour all these ingredients into a jar, add some fresh ground pepper and shake until everything is combined. You can add different dried or fresh herbs depending on your tastes. The sky is the limit! This will keep in your fridge for a week or so, just shake the jar before you use it as the lemon will separate from the oil. Add to your favorite salad and enjoy!

Like Paula Dean always says....Darlin' you got to rub your meat!!!

I love flank steak, its one of my favorite cuts of meat. It is very lean and cooks quickly and has such an amazing flavor. It is always best to cook flank steak rare to medium rare as you will get more flavor from the steak and it won't taste like shoe leather....I have two marinades that work great for flank steak, one that is paleo and the other not so much.....The non-paleo marinade is not a bad marinade it just a few non paleo ingredients in it that are hard to substitute. Take your pick they both rock!!!

Paleo Carne Asada -
1 jalapeno pepper
1 teaspoon of cumin
2 tablespoons of fresh cilantro finely chopped
1 tablespoon of freshly squeezed lime juice (i love limes so I usually throw in another)
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

The best thing to do with the flank steak is trim off any visible fat, and pound the flank steak thin with a meat tenderizer and pour the marinade over the steak and let it sit for at least 2 hours. Then throw it on the grill approximately 5 mins on each side.

Non Paleo Sizzle Marinade -
1/2 cup of Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup of red wine vinegar
1/4 cup of Dijon mustard
1/4 cup of olive oil
1 teaspoon of garlic powder

Combine all ingredients and pour over marinate. Let sit in fridge for at least 2 hours and grill. If I don't pound out the steak and it's on the thicker side, I usually do 5-7 minutes on each side. Remember you can always cook more but you can't cook a steak less once it's done!

Both of these recipes can use a 2 lb flank steak.

Enjoy!

Turkey Loaf

Last night for dinner I made a turkey loaf with brussel sprouts and pecans. Here is the recipe -

Herbed Turkey Loaf -

1.5 pounds of ground turkey

1 tablespoon of grapeseed oil

1 medium onion chopped (you can do finely chopped if you don't like onions in your loaf, I left mine on the bigger side)

1 clove of garlic minced

1 cup of shredded organic zucchini and organic squash (i used a cheese grater on the largest grate)

2 large Omega3 eggs wisked

1/2 cup of blanched almond meal

1 teaspoon of celtic sea salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley

1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme

Preheat the oven to 350. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silpat.

In a large bowl, combine the turkey, grapeseed oil, onion, garlic, zucchini, and eggs. In another bowl, combine almond flour, salt, pepper, parsley, and thyme. Stir the almond mixture into the wet ingredients, then kneed with your hands until completely mixed together. Dump out onto the baking sheet and form into a loaf. You want to make sure you pat it down a bit so it cooks evenly. It should be long and wide. Bake for 50-60 minutes until its browned around the edges and cooked through. I baked my for 60 minutes and I could have pulled it out at 50 so I would start checking at around 50 mins. Take the loaf out of the oven and let it sit for 5-10 minutes.

Brussel Sprouts and Pecans

8 ounces of Brussel Sprouts (I doubled this because the bag I got  from TJ was 16 ounces)

1 ounce of raw pecans chopped

2 shallots minced

Olive Oil

Walnut oil

Take the Brussel sprouts and cut off the stem and make a criss cross mark in the base. Put a pot of water on the stove and bring to a boil and add a steamer tray. Put the brussel sprouts in the steamer tray and steam for 10 minutes. Remove from the steam and place in a bowl of cold water and ice cubes to stop the cooking (this is called an ice bath). Drain and chop. Heat olive oil in a saute pan on medium heat. Add the brussel sprouts and pecans and saute. Add the shallots and cook for another 1-2 minutes. Finish the dish with a drizzle of walnut oil. And Enjoy!



It's Jerky Time!!!!!!

My newest kitchen item finally arrived! Meet the Excalibur Food Dehydrator....I am using it to make some grassfed beef jerky.

One of my biggest struggles is traveling for work while maintaining a paleo lifestyle. I always travel with a bag of Trader Joe's organic orignal beef jerky but unfortunately, its' not completely paleo as is has soy sauce in it. So a light went off and I said to myself, self....why not get a dehydrator and do it yourself???? So I did. I picked up a grassfed flank steak from Whole Foods this weekend and dry rubbed it with some onion power, garlic powder, cayanne pepper, paprika, and celtic salt. I sliced the flank steak across the grain and let the rub sit overnight in the fridge. I loaded the dehydrator today, turned the time to 6 hours and voila, jerky!

Ok, so first batch.. have some adjustments to make. I used way too much Cayenne Pepper and I cooked too long. I think maybe 4 hours might be the trick.

More Paleo Cooking

I have had a few people at the gym ask me for some of my paleo recipes from my time of cooking for people at CFM. I emailed with Nicki yesterday and here it is! Hopefully between both of our blogs everyone will have some great Paleo resources to start living like a caveman!!