Appetizers

Tis' the season for parties, special dinners and get togethers. It can be very hard to stick to a primal diet when going to and from family dinners, work parties and holiday festivities. With these 3 appetizers you may be able to help you and your family make some better choices when it comes to snacking and they are pretty and festive to boot. Oh and dont worry you will not miss out on flavor!

Proscuitto Wrapped Asparagus

1 3 oz Pkg Proscuitto
1 lb Asparagus
1 Lemon

Blanch the Asparagus for 5 minutes in boiling salted water. Pour right into a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking process. Bundle 3 pieces of the asparagus together and wrap with a piece of Proscuitto. Arrange on a platter, zest the lemon and sprinkle over the dish. Lastly juice the lemon and pour the juice over the dish right before serving.

Sweet and Salty Melon

1 Cantaloupe

1 Honeydew Melon

Prosciutto

Cut the melons into bite size pieces and wrap with a slice of proscuitto

BLT Deviled Eggs

12 Hard Boiled Eggs

2+ TBSP Clean Mayo

2 TBSP Grated Onion

2 tsp Dijon Mustard

A Few Dashed Paprika

1/4 C Crumbled Bacon

Grape Tomatoes and Lettuce for garnishing

Mix the the egg yolks with the ingredients listed above excluding the tomatoes and lettuce. Mix wll and season with salt and pepper to taste. Put filling into a zip top bag and cut a hole in the corner and pipe the filling into the center of the egg. Garnish with a few sliced of tomatoe and finely chopped lettuce.

Another Fabulous Find

I absolutely love love LOVE Aidell's sausages and to my great pleasure found them at our local Grocery Outlet store here in Coeur d Alene Idaho. How exciting is that you are thinking to yourself... or maybe your thinking so what they sell them at all the local grocery stores... Well I'm going to drop this like its hot... $7.99 for the double pack!!! That is a serious savings considering you can get a double pack at Costco for $12.99. They also had various flavors on the 4 pack for $3.79 which is also a great deal I typically see them ranging from $4.99-6.99. I asked the manager of Grocery Outlet if this is a common item for them to carry and he said they have them almost all the time! The variates will vary, today they had Mango, Chicken apple, Hobenaro, Tomatoes and Cheese and some turkey sausage patties as well. AWESOME!

"The Best One Yet"

I take the quote from nearly every one at our Crossfit holiday party. This is the best dessert recipe to date and could be dangerous to have around your house! It takes a little work, but in the end its totally worth it! The frosting is especially good and would be nice on a number of things it is very sweet, rich and creamy. You've got to try this one! I used coconut flour which is something I hadn't used before and was surprised how light and airy it was. Not to mention much more affordable than almond flour. I got a 1 lb bag at Pilgrim's for just over $5.00, It is so light that 1 lb looks to be at least 4 cups.

Chocolate Cake with Cashew Icing

2/3 C Almond Flour

1/3 C Coconut Flour

2/3 C Arrowroot

1/2 C Cocoa Powder

1 1/2 tsp Baking Soda

1/2 tsp Baking Powder (Clabber Girl brand is clean)

1/2 tsp Salt

1 tsp Cinnamon

1 Very Ripe Banana

3/4 C Coconut Milk

1/4 C Coconut Oil

1/2 C Honey

2 tsp Cider Vinegar

2 Tbsp Ground Flax

1 Pkg Gelatin

Mix the dry ingredients together and add the mashed banana mixing well.

In a small sauce pan over medium heat warm the coconut milk and coconut oil, add the gelatin and let it sit and thicken off the heat for about 5 minutes.


Add the gelatin mixture and the remaining ingredients to the dry mixture and blend together.


Bake in a 350 degree oven for 25 minutes in a 9 inch round pan that has been greased well.
Cool slightly and turn out of the pan to ensure it doesn't stick.

Icing:
1 5oz Jar of Cashew nut butter
1/2 C Honey
1/3 C Cocoa Powder

blend the ingredients together and stir until it is smooth and a little glossy. Ice the sides and top of the cake with the icing.

Banana Pancake Remix

Back in the first few posts I did I made banana pancakes they were good, but I will admit they were very difficult to flip and didn't really have the right texture. I stumble upon a recipe on MDA and tried it with huge success! I did change a few things to suit what I like though.

2 Bananas- very ripe and mashed

1 tsp Cinnamon

1/2 tsp Salt

3 TBSP Almond butter

1 Egg

1 tsp Vanilla

Mash the bananas first and add the remaining ingredients mixing well.

Cook using oil of some sort on a very hot skillet.

Squash Your Hunger

With this cold weather we have been having here in Idaho I have been eating alot of soup and this one has become sort of an addiction to me. It is smooth, flavorful and nutritious and it warms you right up!

Acorn Squash Soup with Kale and Bacon

1 Large Acorn Squash
1/2 Lb Bacon
1-3 Cups Water
1 Large Onion
1 Bunch Kale
Salt and Pepper

Bake or microwave your squash with a little water until its soft. Scoop out the buttery delish innards and puree them until they are velvety smooth.
Cut the bacon into 1/2 inch pieces and fry up until they are nice and crispy

Pour off most of the bacon fat but leave a little in the pan for flavor and saute the onions until they are soft. Cut the kale into bite size pieces and add to the onions. Season with salt (if needed the bacon makes it pretty salty) and pepper.

Add the squash into the mix and gradually add water until your desired thickness. Let the soup simmer for about 10 minutes and serve topping with the bacon bits.

Exciting News!!!

Trader Joe's is coming to town! This is one of my favorite stores, think Pilgrims with three times the selection and retail costs of a whole lot less! They have a wide selection of organic produce, meat, eggs and ready to cook items. They have vitamins, green cleaning products and a great wine and beer selection. They keep their prices down by using their own consumer brand and I have yet to get an item at Trader Joe's that I don't like! They are scheduled to open in the spring on Spokane's South Hill at 29Th and Regal according to map quest that's 32 miles and 41 minutes away. Totally worth it for one stop shopping! Can you tell how enthused I am?!?!?

The Veggie of the Week...

I missed the veggie of the week post last week due to the holiday I did make a wonderful dish to make it up to you! This week we are on E and I decided to do an eggplant dish. I had not ever used eggplant in cooking and was pleasantly surprised. It had a great flavor and was not as hard to prepare as I had previously heard.

Native to South East Asia eggplant is grown in tropical climates as a garden vegetable and is a staple in many middle eastern countries. It comes in a variety of sizes, shapes and colors including purple, black, white and striped. Eggplant is available in the US year round but is best eaten August-October when they are at their peak. Eggplants are part of the night shade family which include tomatoes, peppers and potatoes. Eggplants are a nutrient dense food containing over 80 nutrients, it contains high amounts of B vitamins and potassium.

Eggplant Lasagana

You can either make a sauce or use a pre-made one like Classico Tomato Basil which is what I did it makes this recipe simple! Heat up the sauce and add a few leaves fresh torn basil, this will make is taste homemade. In a hot skillet scramble 2 eggs and add to the sauce. I know this sounds wierd but trust me when I say that this makes the recipe. It actually seems like cheese when its all put together not to mention another way to get some extra protein!

Slice 2 eggplants to about a 1/4 inch thickness and about 6 roma tomatoes thinly, put on sheet pans and season with salt and pepper. Roast in a 375 degree oven for 20 minutes crank up the heat to 450 and roast an additional 10 minutes or until the veggies are fork tender.

Make a layer of eggplant on the bottom of a cassarole dish, follow by adding a layer of your roasted tomatoes. add about 1/2 C of sauce and add 1# cooked ground beef, next add a layer of fresh or frozen drained spinach top with another 1/2 C of sauce. Over that add another layer of the tomatoes and end with a layer or the eggpant. Add the remaining sauce and bake covered for 1 hour in a 350 degree oven, it is best to let is set for an hour before serving to insure the layers stay together.

Sweet Potato Casserole

This is the last recipe in my Thanksgiving holiday repertoire, but have no fear I have already started my Christmas menu!

4-6 Peeled, diced and boiled sweet potatoes
1 Tbsp Cinnamon
1/2 tsp Nutmeg
1/2 C Pure maple syrup + a few extra TBSP's
1/2 C Coconut milk
1 C Pecans

Mash the boiled potatoes with the spices and maple syrup until smooth. Slowly pour in the coconut milk and blend until its creamy. Put into a baking dish and top with the pecans and drizzle a few TBSP's of maple syrup over the nuts. Bake covered at 350 for 45 minutes uncover and bake an additional 15 minutes to toast the nuts.

Apple Pie

Here is yet another recipe from my Thanksgiving spread. This one was the biggest hit out of all the food I brought to my family's house. My hubby loved it and made sure we had a big slice to bring home for later!

Crust:
3/4 C Pitted dates
1 1/2 C Almond flour
1 Tbsp Coconut oil

In a blender or food processor blend all the crust ingredients until they start to stick together and the dates are broken down. Press into a pie pan that is greased with coconut oil. Now I didn't bake the crust before filling but I think it would be a good idea. So lets say bake at 350 until the crust is firm and a little dry to the touch I would guess 10 minutes or so.


Filling:
5 Peeled and sliced apples I like to use gala or granny smith for a little tartness
1 Tbsp Cinnamon
1 tsp Nutmeg
1/2 C Honey
Juice of 1/2 a lemon or 2 Tbsp
A dash of cloves

Mix together and let set in the bowl for 5-10 minutes to get the juices flowing. Pour into crust it will be heaping this is a good thing we are going for mile high here!

Topping:

1 C Coconut

1 C Pecans

2 Tbsp Coconut oil

1 tsp Cinnamon

1 tsp Vanilla

Put in a food processor and give it a few pulses to break down the nuts and coconut. Pile over the apples.

Bake at 350 for 45 minutes covered with foil. Remove the foil and bake an additional 10 minutes to get a nice golden topping.