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.

"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.

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.

A Clean Holiday Delight

This was one of the recipes that I brought to my parents house for Thanksgiving dinner. It was a hit especially with my nieces they kept coming back for more!

Primal Eggnog

1 tsp. Vanilla

1 tsp. Cinnamon

1 Fresh Nutmeg

4 Egg yolks

3 C. Coconut milk

1 Tbsp. Pure maple syrup

In a sauce pan on meduim low heat 2 cups of the coconut milk with the egg yolks. This needs to be a very slow process otherwise you will have scrambled eggs. Cook for about 10 minutes or until the milk starts to thicken and coat the back of the spoon. Remove from the stove and place in an ice bath. Stir to cool for about 5 minutes add the remaining milk, cinnamon, maple syrup and vanilla. Transfer to a pitcher and cool for a few hours to thicken. Serve in glasses with fresh nutmeg ground on top.

The finished product yummy!

Happy Holidays in My Paleo World

Wow Thanksgiving come and gone and less than a month until Christmas... Can you believe it??? Sorry for the post hiatus I have been crazy busy with preparing for the holiday at home and at work. Never fear I did have time to make some scrumptious dishes for Thanksgiving! I will post one today and the rest through out the week and maybe just maybe you out there will want to make some of them over the holiday season.

Holiday gatherings can be tough when you are the only (Paleo-ite Paleo-un Paleo-odian???) Whatever you want to call it... My family was so great this year, we all decided to take a healthier approach to traditional dishes. My sister ground her own wheat and used a fresh pumpkin to make her pies and my mom made a jello mold with completely Paleo ingredients (GO MOM). I contributed a Dutch Apple Pie, Sweet Potato Casserole, Eggnog and Bacon Mashed Sweet Potatoes. Everyone raved over the dishes and were amazed that they were made with Paleo ingredients!

My mom with her delish side dish.

My Mom Debbie's Holiday Cranberry Mold

1 20 oz Can crushed pineapple- drain and reserve the juice

12 oz Fresh cranberries

3 Envelopes unflavored gelatin ( I searched and didn't see why this wouldn't be considered clean)

1/2 C Honey

1 Orange peeled and cut into chunks

1 C Diced Celery

1 Tart apple-grated

1/2 C Walnuts-chopped

Mix the gelatin into 1/4 C. of the pineapple juice let set and thicken. In a saucepan over medium heat cook remaining pineapple juice with the cranberries for about 5 minutes or until they start to burst open. Add the gelatin mixture and honey and cook 1 minute longer to incorporate. Put the orange in a blender with 1 C. of the cranberry mixture and blend until it forms fine pieces. Add the remaining cranberry mixture and pulse a few times to slightly break down the cranberries. Pour into a bowl and add the celery, apple and walnuts. Pour into a glass dish or jello mold and chill until you are ready to serve.