Monthly Archives: September 2016

20 Warming Paleo Soups for Autumn!

20-paleo-soups-to-make-for-autumn

School is in full swing! It’s going to be October this weekend………….what? The sniffles are already going around at school. So, I am giving you a roundup of delicious, nourishing soups full of broth and vegetables that you can enjoy all winter! Grandma was right about soup! Not only is it comforting, but it is healthy, warming and nourishing! Eat up! 🙂

Beef and Cabbage Soup from My Big Fat Grain Free Life

Beef Shank Vegetable Soup from Eat Heal Thrive

Chicken “Zoodle” Soup from The Tasty Alternative

Chinese Meatball Soup from Paleo Flourish Magazine

Cioppino Redux from Rem Cooks

Crock Pot Chicken and Vegetable Soup from Sam Eats Her Nutrients

Crock Pot Cream of Tomato Basil Soup (Dairy Free) from Sam Eats Her Nutrients

Curried Cream of Broccoli Soup from Nom Nom Paleo

Delicata Squash Soup from A Girl Worth Saving

Fennel and Spinach Soup from Healing Family Eats

Hearty and Nourishing Vegetable Bison Soup from Sam Eats Her Nutrients

Jalapeno and Bacon Cream of Mushroom Soup from Naked Cuisine

Moroccan Spiced Carrot Soup with Pomegranate and Curried Kale Chips from Reclaiming Yesterday

New England Clam Chowder (Dairy Free) from Sam Eats Her Nutrients

Paleo Chicken and Smoked Sausage Gumbo from Foraged Dish

Paleo Cream of Pumpkin Soup from Oh Snap! Let’s Eat!

Paleo Egg Drop Soup for One from Wicked Spatula

Roasted Pumpkin Soup from Against All Grain

Roasted Red Pepper and Tomato Soup from Paleo Grubs

Spicy Asian Chicken, Veggie and “Noodle” Soup from Every Last Bite

Enjoy your day!

Eat Your Nutrients!

Grain Free Pumpkin Spice Coffee Cake

Today is the first day of Autumn, and to celebrate I am baking this Grain Free Pumpkin Spice Coffee Cake! Enjoy this cake after a beautiful afternoon of raking leaves with someone you love! Or, sit outside on a cool sweatshirt morning with a piece of this cake and a warm cup of coffee! It is pure heaven!!!

grain-free-pumpkin-coffee-cake-for-autumn

When you hear coffee cake, don’t just think of breakfast. This is a great snack cake. I have drizzled the top while it is still warm with a glaze that soaks in and makes the cake super moist! So grab your Bundt pan!

pumpkin-coffee-cake-grain-free

Grain Free Pumpkin Spice Coffee Cake

Preheat your oven to 350º degrees. Now, lets get our ingredients out.

Ingredients:

2 Cups of Canned Pumpkin (I use this brand)

3 Eggs

1/4 Cup of Honey

1/4 Cup of Coconut Oil

1 1/2 Cups of Superfine Almond Flour (I like this brand)

2 Tablespoons of Coconut Flour (I use this brand)

1 Teaspoon of Ground Cinnamon

1/2 Teaspoon of Allspice

1/4 Teaspoon of Nutmeg

1/4 Teaspoon of Ground Ginger

1/4 Teaspoon of Sea Salt

1 Teaspoon of Baking Soda

1 Teaspoon of Apple Cider Vinegar

1/3 Cup of Coarsely Chopped Raw Pecans

Glaze:

2 Tablespoons of Coconut Oil (melted)

2 Teaspoons of Honey

1/8 Teaspoon of Vanilla Extract

a pinch of sea salt

Directions: Grease a Bundt pan with organic shortening or coconut oil and set it aside. In a large bowl with a hand held mixer, blend the pumpkin, eggs, honey, and coconut oil for two minutes. In a separate bowl, whisk together the almond flour, coconut flour, spices, baking soda and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the wet, and mix with your hand held mixer until thoroughly incorporated. Add the teaspoon of apple cider vinegar and blend again for 30 seconds.

Spoon the batter into the Bundt pan and smooth the top. Sprinkle the top with your coarsely chopped pecans. Place in the preheated oven for 40 minutes to bake. The top should spring back slightly when ready. Remove the pan from the oven, and cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes. While it is cooling, prepare the glaze above.

After five minutes, turn the Bundt pan over with a wire rack on top of it to catch the cake. When it is out of the pan it will be upside down. Turn the cake right side up by using another wire rack sandwiching the cake between the two, or carefully use your hands to turn the cake right side up with the pecans on top. Drizzle the glaze onto the cake and cool.

pumpkin-coffee-cake

Happy Autumn! Although it’s still hotter than average for September, there are signs of Fall outside. The pumpkins are ripening for one, and before you know it, it will be time for cozy sweatshirts and jeans, and leaf raking!

Grain Free Pumpkin Spice Coffee Cake

Eat Your Nutrients!

Paleo Energy Bars

This recipe came about because my daughter, Danielle, asked me to try and replicate her beloved bar she orders online. She recently had a baby, and needed some handy, nutritious, energy-rich snacks on hand.

Make Your Own Paleo Energy Bars

She is breastfeeding, and her baby boy has a voracious appetite. He is adorable and growing fast at one month old. She regularly orders these bars to have on hand for her and her husband for packing in their work lunches and for snacks. She is a nurse, and he is a teacher. She is home on an extended maternity leave and is pinching pennies to stay home as long as possible, so she wondered if it was doable to make them herself at home. So I said I would give it a whirl.

I am happy to report that she thought they were “Amazing”! 🙂

These bars are chocked full of goodness! They have almond butter, healthy coconut oil, unsweetened coconut, almonds, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, raisins, honey, almond flour, sea salt and vanilla. They are a symphony in your mouth. There is no baking involved! Make Your Own Mustang Bars on a Tray.JPG

Make Your Own Paleo Energy Bars

Lay out a small cookie sheet and cut parchment paper to fit the pan. Set aside.

You can use a hand mixer or stand mixer for this recipe.

Ingredients:

1 Cup of Almond Butter

1/2 Cup of Coconut Oil

1/2 Cup of Raw Honey

1 Tablespoon of Vanilla Extract

1/2 Teaspoon of Sea Salt

Mix all the above ingredients together with a mixer until well blended.

Add in:

1 Cup of Roughly Chopped Raw Walnuts

1 Cup of Sliced Almonds

1 Cup of Almond Flour

1/2 Cup of Raisins

1/2 Cup of Pumpkin Seeds

1/2 Cup of Unsweetened Shredded Coconut

Pour the nuts, raisins, almond flour, pumpkin seeds and coconut into the bowl of the mixed ingredients. Blend in all with your mixer, or hand stir with a wooden spoon. Pour onto the cookie sheet and pat out with some coconut oil on your fingertips to keep them from sticking to your hands. Pat them to your desired thickness. You don’t have to fill up the whole cookie sheet if you have a larger one. Just pat an edge. Freeze for 30 minutes before cutting them into bars.

Store them in the refrigerator or freezer. If you will be packing them in a lunch, make sure you have an ice pack in your bag as they get soft a room temperature. 🙂

Paleo Energy Bars

Eat Your Nutrients!

DIY Macadamia Nut Milk

Making your own nut milk is a great option if you want to really know what is in your milk, and/or want to avoid additives that prolong the shelf life of store bought dairy alternatives, such as guar gum.

Make Your Own Macadamia Nut Milk

My go to milk that is ready-made has been coconut milk. There are a couple brands that are just coconut extract and water, and that is the kind I buy. But, when I am in the mood for a different flavor, or want to mix it up, I make my own nut milks!

One of the things I really love about Macadamia Nut Milk is not only the flavor, but the really white milk you get from these nuts. They are higher in fat too, so you get a really creamy milk.

I also have a recipe for Toasted Hazelnut-Vanilla Nut Milk here that is yummy and so good in coffee.

Macadamia Nut Milk

Macadamia nuts are pricey, so I just make this milk occasionally. But I enjoy it oh so much when I do!

DIY Macadamia Nut Milk

DIY Macadamia Nut Milk

Ingredients:

1 Cup of Raw Macadamia Nuts

4 Cups of Good Well Water or Filtered Water

a pinch of Sea Salt

1 Teaspoon of Pure Vanilla Extract

Directions: Soak Your Macadamia Nuts in 3 cups of cold water on the counter top at room temperature for two hours. If you are not making your milk right away, you can at this point place the nuts, in the water, in the refrigerator, until you are ready to make the milk for up to 24 hours.

Drain and rinse the macadamia nuts, and place them in a high speed blender. Then add the remaining ingredients. Blend on high for two to three minutes until emulsified.

Get a large bowl, preferably with a pour spout because it’s just less messy :-), and pour the milk through a mesh nut milk bag like this one and into the bowl. Drain the milk by gently squeezing the bag when most of the liquid has passed through to extract all the liquid.

Pour the milk into a sealed container, and refrigerate.

This milk is unsweetened, which is the way I like it. If you like yours sweetened, feel free to add sweetener. If I want a sweet milk, I usually add a touch of honey during the blending stage.

Macadamia Nut Milk

Have a lovely day!

Macadamia Nut Milk – Homemade

Macadamia Nut Milk

Eat Your Nutrients!

Sticky Asian Chicken Drumsticks

These drumsticks are the perfect party food, kid friendly, and you can also substitute wings for Super Bowl Sunday!

We are cooking more Asian food the past couple weeks here at home with the Autumn Moon Festival coming up September 15th. Last year after having a fun dinner at our house, we lit Sky Lanterns outside, and it was a lot of fun!

If you are new to the blog, I have two Chinese daughters, and we have had so much fun celebrating their heritage with some of the special occasions celebrated in China since they were babies.

Sticky Asian Chicken Drumsticks

Today, I have a recipe for you for Sticky Asian Chicken Drumsticks! They are kid friendly, as all finger foods tend to be! 🙂 I found the inspiration for these in my many Asian cookbooks I have collected. We served them recently with Asian Cabbage Salad with Cashews, Hot Jasmine Rice, and for the rest of the family who can have them, some gluten free egg rolls from Feel Good Foods that I buy at the market for in the freezer section.

Sticky Asian Chicken Drumsticks

One of the nice things about this recipe, is the marinade! You make it and add the drumsticks. Then you let it refrigerate at least two hours and up to 24 hours. You have flexibility!

Ingredients:

2 1/2 Pounds Chicken Drumsticks (This was 10)

Marinade

1/2 Cup of Green Scallions (sliced)

1/4 Cup Olive Oil

2 Tablespoons of Garlic Olive Oil (or 2 more of Olive Oil and 2 Cloves of Minced Garlic)

1/4 Cup Honey (the sticky part)

2 Tablespoons of Coconut Aminos (this is a soy sauce substitute)

1 Tablespoon of Chili Powder

1 Tablespoon of Ground Ginger

1 Teaspoon of Sea Salt

1/2 Teaspoon of Ground Coriander

1/4 Teaspoon of Red Pepper Flakes

1/8 Teaspoon of Ground White Pepper

Zest of 2 Limes

Whisk together the marinade ingredients. Add the drumsticks to a baking pan, and coat them all over with the marinade. Cover and refrigerate for 2 to 24 hours.

Sticky Asian Chicken Drumsticks

When ready to cook the drumsticks, Preheat the oven to 350º degrees. Then, heat a large oven safe pan over high heat. Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil to the pan, then the drumsticks taken from the marinade. Brown on each side for approximately 3 minutes. Pour the marinade from the chicken over the chicken you browned, and bake in the oven for 30 minutes, turning after 15 minutes. Bake until the center of the drumsticks reach 165º degrees.

Plate the drumsticks, and drizzle additional sauce from the pan over them at your discretion. 🙂

Eat Your Nutrients!

Asian Cabbage Salad with Cashews

Here’s a new Asian Cabbage Salad with Cashews recipe you can make as a side dish, or add a protein, like chicken to make it a main dish salad!

Asian Cabbage Salad with Cashews

You parboil the shredded cabbage for just 3 minutes to soften it a bit, then add the dressing and remaining ingredients.

After it chills in the fridge for a few hours, all the flavors meld together deliciously.

Asian Cabbage Salad with Cashews

Just before serving, sprinkle the salad with crunchy cashews and a little extra sea salt and pepper!

Asian Cabbage Salad with Cashews

Asian Cabbage Salad with Cashews

Ingredients:

1/2 of a Green Cabbage, Shredded with a Sharp Knife

1/4 Cup of Shredded Carrots

3 Green Onions, Sliced

1/2 Cup of Coarsely Chopped Cashews

Dressing:

1 Tablespoon of Fish Sauce (I use Red Boat)

1 Tablespoon of Coconut Aminos

Juice of 2 Limes

1/2 Cup of Full Fat Coconut Milk

2 Tablespoons of Garlic Olive Oil or (Olive Oil and 1 Clove of Minced Garlic)

1 Teaspoon of Sea Salt

1/2 Teaspoon of Black Pepper

Directions: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. While the water is coming to a boil, whisk together your dressing and prep the rest of the ingredients.

When the water is at a rolling boil, add the shredded cabbage and cook for 3 minutes. Pour the cabbage into a colander, and drain thoroughly.

Add the warm cabbage to a large bowl along with the green onions and carrots. Pour the dressing over the vegetables and toss to coat well. Refrigerate for 2 hours before serving and up to a day. Before serving, sprinkle with the chopped cashews and some additional sea salt and pepper to taste.

Have a fabulous day! 🙂

Eat Your Nutrients!