Recipes for week 1: Saturday, September 1 to Friday, September 7!

See that crazy smile? That's about how I feel today, as I'm compiling a list of recipes for my first week. These past few days I've heard people say all kinds of things to me, ranging from "Wow, you're ambitious!" over "Cool. Can't wait to hear all about it." to "Well, you've finally gone and lost your mind."

Why, yes, I have! And that's why you all love me! ;) Okay, maybe not. But admit it, you kind of like me. Okay, don't answer that.

So, here is my list of recipes that I will cook during this first week. You'll notice there are recipes for real meals, and then there are some for snacks. Around here we need those snacks. It's what makes my kids stay on the paleo track. Besides, I really love to bake and prepare snacks, so we all benefit! And now, without further ado... my list of recipes for week 1!

Ground Beef Stroganoff, a recipe that was posted by http://thepaleomama.com

Curry Lime Chicken Wings. This was posted by http://mypaleorecipebox.wordpress.com/

Southwestern Chorizo Burgers, posted by http://www.paleoparents.com

Smoky Whole Lemon Chicken, posted by my friend Peter at http://strictlypaleoish.wordpress.com

"Pizza Crust" Pizza, because we all really loved this. It was posted by http://www.unrefinedkitchen.com

Merlot Braised Beef Roast, posted by http://paleoonmain.blogspot.com/

Chicken Tortilla-less Soup, a recipe by http://www.paleocomfortfoods.com

That's the main dishes! Now for the snacks!

Avocado and Banana Muffins... dying to try these! Posted by http://http://foreverfit.tv

Paleo Granittle "Cereal" , which is of course no cereal!! Posted by  http://www.facebook.com/#!/meghan.watkins.50

Paleo Macaroons with Berry Conserve. I love macaroons! Posted by http://www.primalbritain.co.uk

Okay, now, after reading this list, check out the picture on top. ;) Good luck to me, I guess!! 

Paleo Acronyms

If you're new to Paleo, you'll have stumbled over some Paleo acronyms. And Google is, of course, a great place to search for them.

I decided to put together a list of the most common acronyms, so you have them all in one place. Copy it, print it, put it on your fridge. ;)

Before you know it, you'll have them memorized and won't need my little list anymore.








1) SAD - Standard American Diet, which really stands for the standard western diet.

2) CW - Conventional Wisdom

3) MUFA - Mon-Unsaturated Fatty Acids

4) PUFA - Poly-Unsaturated Fatty Acids

5) SFA - Saturated Fatty Acids (We like those!)

6) EVOO - Extra Virgin Olive Oil (remember not to cook with EVOO, as it oxidizes)

7) EVCO - Extra Virgin Coconut Oil (heating EVCO is no problem)

8) IF - Intermittent Fasting

9) LCT - Long Chain Triglycerides

10) MCT - Medium Chain Triglycerides

11) CLO - Cod Liver Oil

12) GM/GMO - Genetically Modified/Organisms

13) GF - Gluten Free (Gluten Free does not make it Paleo!!)

14) LC - Low Carb

15) CHO - Carbohydrates

16) HDL - High Density Lipoprotein

17) LDL - Low Density Lipoprotetin

18) CLA - Conjugated Linoleic Acid

19) EPA/DHA - Eicosapentaenoic and Docosahexaenoic Acid (the two important Omega 3s... aren't you glad there is an abbreviation for those?)

20) BBS - Body by Science

21) CVD - Cardio Vascular Disease

22) CHD - Coronary Heart Disease

23) BG - Blood Glucose

24) FBG - Fasting Blood Glucose

25) Primal Blueprint

There are more. But I would argue that these are the most common ones. Did I forget any? Leave a comment. :)

Fall is in the air...

... and after a beautiful, sunny summer in Portland, I'm ready for this lovely season. I don't think there is a better place to be in the fall, than Portland (and maybe Germany). There is a thick orange glow to the sun, the shadows are getting longer, the leaves turn into the most vibrant reds, oranges, and yellow, and it's the season for pumpkins, squash, soups, stews, hot tea, and long walks in the forest park.

Speaking of soups and stews, if you haven't seen it yet, there is an awesome GIVEAWAY at FastPaleo. You can win ONE of FIVE Crockpots. Here are the rules:

Rules!
1. Upload as many Slow Cooker (Crock-Pot) recipes as you like to FastPaleo.com here from Midnight Sunday September 2 through 11:59pm Saturday September 8, 2012. Each upload is an entry, and the only requirements are that the recipes be paleo/primal and use a slow cooker.

2. Contest recipes will be posted on the FastPaleo.com website and Facebook page as they are uploaded, so the earlier you upload, the more chance you have for likes.

3. The uploaders of the FIVE RECIPES with the most TOTAL LIKES, on both the FastPaleo.com recipe pages, and the Facebook posts, will EACH WIN A CROCK-POT!!!
So the likes will be added from here on the website:

4. We want to encourage as many people as possible to upload recipes, so while you are encouraged to upload as many recipes as you like, each individual can only win at most one Crock-Pot. If one entrant has more than one entry in the top five of total likes, the entrant(s) with the next most total likes become eligible to win. I think this is fair and gives the most people a chance to upload and win

5. The FIVE WINNERS will be announced Monday September, 10!!!

6. Unfortunately, due to Crock-Pot’s shipping rules, the contest is LIMITED TO US RESIDENTS ONLY.

 September 10th happens to be my birthday! What a great day to give away 5 CrockPots, eh?
 So, get creative, folks. And again, if you'd like me to try a specific recipe during my one year challenge , please upload to FastPaleo, and contact me at ute at fastpaleo dot com to let me know about it. I will give those recipes priority!
 
And finally, want to participate in my challenge? Are you ready to hand over control over your food to me?

If you want to be part of this fun challenge, comment here or on my Facebook page, tell me for how long you'd like to participate (1 month, 3 months, 6 months, 12 months or other amount), and we can have a dialog on what worked, what didn't. I'll keep track of everyone who would like to participate, and we'll discuss our successes and failures once a week. :) Come on now, you know you want to!


 

The FastPaleo Challenge

It was while eating this delicious Almond Zucchini Bread from FastPaleo, that I talked to my friend about the idea of a one year FastPaleo challenge. My friend loved the thought and encouraged me to go ahead with it. So, why not?

I have been working for FastPaleo for a couple of months now. I absolutely love my job, and oh my gosh, the recipes have my mouth watering constantly. But, no matter how much I love all of the recipes, most of the time I end up throwing together a few items in a frying pan and call it dinner. This is partly due to the fact, that I am not a terribly organized person. This means, I go to the store and I buy whatever the heck comes to mind, and then, at home I try to figure out what to do with all the meat and produce I have sitting in my fridge. Yes, FastPaleo has been a great help in this department, but I feel I can do better.

A couple of weeks ago, I came up with the idea of doing a one year challenge. Starting, September 1st, 2012, I will cook at least one FastPaleo meal per day for the following 365 days. I promise to try to make it two meals a day, but may not always make it. :) Here are the rules:

1) Create a shopping and cooking list for the week on Sunday.
2) Post the recipes on this blog.
3) Cook at least one FastPaleo meal a day.
4) Write a review on all the recipes I have tried.
5) Do this during vacation times as well, unless I am unable to be in the kitchen. (I shall give myself a total of 10 days of "vacation" time, meaning, at the end of 365 days I cannot miss more than 10 days of FastPaleo cooking.)
6) I have to make up any day that goes over 10 days, meaning, I'll have to make two FastPaleo meals per day for each day I miss.

What I'll get out of this: I will actually be forced to create a cooking schedule. This should save time and money.

What you'll get out of this: a heck of a lot of entertainment, as I'm going through my year of FastPaleo cooking.

Want to create a challenge for me? Come up with a recipe that you think is weird, fun, crazy, awesome, delicious, upload it to FastPaleo via this LINK, and send me an e-mail to let me know about it at ute at fast paleo dot com.

Every month I will choose my favorite recipe and I will send the poster of this recipe a little thank you (TBD). The countdown is on. Three days of slacking... before Day 1!

Giveaway at Cultures for Health

Cultures for Health is doing a giveaway. The first 500 people to order will receive a free kombucha scoby. I urge you to check them out, as they have all kinds of great products for fermenting. Remember my water kefir post.

Check out this link for the giveaway: Cultures for Health Giveaway!

Paleo Bread 2

I wanted to post here saying what a great experience I had with Julian Bakery and their bakery, and how much I love their bread, even after having been doubtful in the beginning.

Unfortunately, this is not the story I am going to tell today. I placed my order for the coconut paleo bread on July 18. I received my order confirmation and noted the little remark that the breads don't ship until about 2 weeks later.
When I still had no bread August 4, I contacted customer service, inquiring about the status of my order. My e-mail was left unanswered. I waited.  Two days later an e-mail confirmation was sent. The bread had finally been shipped.

I received the bread on August 13. It was moldy, as can be seen on the picture. Another e-mail to customer service was left unanswered. It took an e-mail from James at FastPaleo.com for Julian Bakery to finally respond.

"We bake and ship orders fresh and they arrive within 2 days. We did have a small batch of bread go out without Apple Cider Vinegar so some loaves spoiled quickly within 2 days."

 Clearly, the bread was not shipped two days before I received it, as the shipping confirmation was in my inbox almost a week before the bread finally did arrive.
I was given an e-mail address for a specific person who I was told would help me.

I contacted her on Thursday of last week asking for a refund. I received a reply Monday. Sadly no apology, simply the request to send her my full name and order number. She immediately took care of the refund, which I was informed of on Paypal today. I am happy to report that not only did I receive a refund for my bread but also for the cost of shipping. After everything that happened, this was a positive surprise.

The verdict? I'm sticking with making things myself. No hassle, just a little more work. 

Baked Barbecue Drumsticks

I love everything barbecue... pulled pork, chicken wings, potato chips. If it's barbecue, I'm a happy cavegirl.

Tonight, I was hoping to post a German pork roast recipe. Alas, my favorite store was out of pork roasts, so I had to come up with something else for dinner. Digging through my fridge and cabinets, I found all the right ingredients for yummy barbecue drumsticks!

NOM, NOM, NOM!!

Ingredients: (serving two adults and two kids)

12 drumsticks
1 small can of tomato paste (6oz)
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 tbsp honey
salt, pepper, smoked paprika, chili pepper
a "swish" of oil (your choice!)
2 tsp of liquid hickory smoke (one can debate the paleo-ness of this, but I love the stuff, so I'm using it)

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 425F.
Place drumsticks on a cookie sheet.
Mix all other ingredients in a bowl, and spread the mixture on the drumsticks, until they're covered.
Bake the drumsticks for about 45 to 50 minutes.
Halfway through baking, you can spread the rest of your mixture on the wings and finish baking.

It's really that easy. You may opt to turn over the drumsticks, although I don't. They're really super delicious, and even my picky eater daughter loves them. :)

Coconut Flour Brownies

Before posting the recipe for this very delicious brownie, let me say this... Like so many other 21st century cave-people I have an insatiable sweet tooth. Even after 20 months of living this way, sugar or sugar alternatives like honey, are incredibly dangerous to me. So, I have to remind myself that brownies, cookies, and other treats are just that... TREATS! One brownie has to be enough.

The fact is, honey is still sugar. And strictly speaking, brownies are not part of a true paleo diet. But we do live in the 21st century, and thousands of years of culinary evolution have made it possible for us to enjoy massive amounts of sugary treats. So, go ahead, make the brownies, enjoy them, but do know when to quit. And I promise, I will, too...:)

Ingredients:  

1/3 cup coconut oil
1/2 cup cocoa powder
6 eggs
1 cup honey
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup coconut flour
1 cup chocolate chips (optional... I usually leave them out)

Instructions:     

Preheat oven to 350F.
In medium saucepan melt coconut oil and cocoa powder.
Mix eggs, honey, and vanilla with electric mixer until well combined and fluffy.
Add in coconut oil/cocoa powder and keep mixing.
Add coconut flour and mix until you have a smooth batter.
(The batter for these is going to fairly liquid!)
Grease 8x8 pan, pour in the batter and bake for 30 to 35 minutes.
Let cool in pan before cutting. 

If you like your brownies gooey, you'll want to take them out between 30 and 32 minutes. It really depends on the actual heat of your oven. Mine are done at 32 minutes. At 35 minutes I don't like them anymore. But you can experiment.

These brownies freeze well. So, if you have a real sweet tooth, simply freeze most of them and just keep some out.

"It Starts With Food"

I could start my quick review by saying just one thing:

"Best Paleo book ever written. Buy it, read it, live it."

                            THE END

Yes, I like It Starts With Food that much! Sure, I've read Robb Wolf, Mark Sisson, Lauren Cordain, and various other authors, and some of them I didn't care for, and some of them I loved. Robb Wolf was by far the most challenging read. I had to translate a good number of words. His knowledge and scientific explanation are unbeatable. Period!
Sisson's evolutionary approach to the subject, written in delightfully simple English, made complete sense to me.

But it was the Hartwigs, who wrote a book, that sounded so true, that really struck a chord, and that had me turning the pages until the very end, without ever getting tired of what I was reading. What makes this book so different from what I've read so far, is that it focuses on your relationship with food. "Must. Eat. Sugar." is a phrase (three phrases, if you count the periods) that could have been invented by me. With a bit of a tough love approach Melissa and Dallas eloquently explain, why you're addicted to sugar, and how to beat your addiction. They have the science to back up their claims, and they offer a solution, and a plan.

You will not find any sugar coating in this book, and if you'd like to take the "ease into it" approach to Paleo, then you'll be disappointed here. In this book you learn how to jump in head first and learn how to swim.

They explain exactly how much protein, carbs, how many fruits, vegetables, and fats you should eat in each meal. They offer advice on getting the family on board, and yes, at the end of the book you'll find a number of recipes. You'll learn what oils are good, bad, and ugly, and why to stay away from grains, legumes, and sugar.

But besides all of the educational "stuff", I really, really enjoy, how each chapter is reasonably short. Everything is explained so easily, in fact, that children will have no trouble understanding. As a matter of fact, I read the comparison on satiety and satiation to my 11 year old daughter, and not only did she understand the chapter, it also made sense to her from a science standpoint (they used Prime Rib and Oreos as an example... Perfect!).

It Starts With Food, in my opinion, is a must read for every Paleo newbie... and everyone who has a somewhat challenging relationship with food and could use a little help getting past their issues. :)

Paleo Cordon Bleu and Sweet Potato Fries

Wow, I was going to post this recipe about three days ago, and then life got in the way. What's with all the summer activities, ballet intensives, and other things that my lovely brood would like to be entertained with? What ever happened to summer afternoons in the sun? With a kiddie pool, slices of watermelon, and spray guns?

And so, instead of posting recipes, I spent a good amount of time in my car, because chauffeur is truly my one true passion... ;) I'll admit that much of yesterday we sat around at a river in the beautiful Columbia River Gorge, and indulged in cheese and wine. The kids and I caught tiny little fishies, and decided they were baby salmon of some sort. Yes, we released them afterwards. We're Paleo, but we don't do mini-salmon.

Well, here's another German-ish (French-ish) goodie for you! Look away if you don't eat dairy.

Ingredients:

4 thick pork chops
4 slices of ham (any ham you like)
4 slices of cheddar (I use Tillamook)
2 eggs
1 cup almond flour or almond meal
salt, pepper, paprika
coconut oil (or fat of your choice)

2 large sweet potatoes (cut into wedges)
oil to brush on the sweet potatoes (you'll know best which oil you're comfortable with)
salt, pepper, smoked paprika, maybe some garlic powder

With a sharp knife, cut lengthwise into the pork, so you create a pocket that is closed on three sides. This pocket needs to be big enough to hold a slice of ham and a slice of cheese as shown in the picture.

Wrap the slices of cheese into the ham, and insert them into the meet with the closed ham side facing the front. This will ensure that not all of the cheese spills out during cooking.

Season pork with salt, pepper, and paprika.
Mix eggs in one bowl, add almond flour to another bowl. Cover the pork in egg all around, then "bread" it with the almond flour, until it is nicely covered all around.

Heat a cast iron skillet, until it is very hot, and add a good amount of coconut oil (or other fat). You want it to be enough oil to cover the entire bottom of the pan. Almond flour breading has a tendency to dry out quickly, and it will come off if it does. So add more coconut oil, as soon as it is soaked up. You can cook the pork on both sides on medium high heat, then turn down heat to medium low, cover with a lid and cook through for a good 20 minutes or so. You'll want to turn the pork over every few minutes.
I usually cut into one chop to check if it is done.

For the sweet potato fries, heat oven to 400F. Brush the sweet potato wedges with your oil/salt/pepper/paprika/garlic powder mixture, and set onto a cookie sheet. Bake for about 20 minutes. Then turn oven to BROIL and leave in for another 10 minutes or so. Careful... broiling can quickly burn sweet potato fries, so you'll want to check frequently.

This delicious meal feeds our family of 4! And I'm a little weird, I like to add some lemon juice onto my pork chop. It's not for everyone... but I love it!!

Enjoy!

Paleo Margarita, Baby!

If you're Paleo, you likely have heard of the famous NorCal Margarita... Mr. Robb Wolf's Nor Cal Margarita, to be specific. What goes in it?

Tequila (100% agave!)
Club Soda
Lime Juice
Ice...

I dig that stuff... It's delicious, and way, way, way better than any of the sweet margaritas I've ever had in the past.

It's a particularly hot in Portland, Oregon today. At 97F us fair skinned Oregonians are not really sure what to do with ourselves. Drinking margaritas sounds like the perfect solution to this problem. Of course, it just so happens that TODAY I am out of limes! But, I'm resourceful! And so I created my own version of the NorCal Margarita...

What goes in it?

Tequila (of course)
Club Soda
Juice of one small grapefruit (that nobody in this family seems to be interested in eating)
As many pieces of watermelon as you like
Ice...

Mix it all together, and I'm not going to tell you how much of everything you should add... and ENJOY!
This is, by far, the best Paleo Margarita I have ever tasted, and so I shall call it Grokette's Melonita!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Crunchy Paleo Cookies

This young lady is my daughter, Toothless Fairy (who is not so toothless anymore, so we'll have to come up with a better name), enjoying the very delicious crunchy Paleo cookies I made today.

I "came up with the idea" to make a crunchy cookie, because my best friend, Shady Lady, recently complained pointed out, that all Paleo cookies are too chewy. She wants a crunchy cookie. Now there's a challenge I can't resist. With a few good Paleo ingredients at hand, I went to work and whipped up some yummy cookies, that are crunchy on the outside, chewy on the inside, and so delicious, that my sweet daughter had to admit, being Paleo is not all that bad after all. :)

Ingredients

1 1/4 cups almond flour
1/4 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
5 tbsp coconut flour
1/2 cup coconut crystal (or other DRY sweetener of choice)
2/3 cup expeller pressed coconut oil (it tastes like nothing) 
1 egg
1/4 cup honey
1 splash of vanilla
1 tsp baking soda

chocolate chips or other fillers like raisins

1) Preheat oven to 350F.

2) Mix almond flour, coconut flakes, coconut flour and baking soda in a small bowl.

3) In a different bowl, mix egg, honey, and vanilla with electric mixer. It'll turn nice and fluffy. Now add the coconut oil and keep mixing.

4) Add coconut crystals and keep mixing until everything is combined. You can now add your almond flour mixture. And finally, stir in the chocolate chips or raisins. I don't give amounts for things like chocolate chips. That's a personal preference.

5) Once your dough is ready, set it in the fridge for about 15 minutes or so. This is especially important in the summer, when the coconut oil is not solid.

6) Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and scoop approximately tablespoonfulls onto the parchment paper. Bake for 12 minutes. The cookies will turn golden brown. Let them cool on the sheet for a few more minutes, then ideally set them on a rack to cool completely before you move them into a storage container. 

It's important to know that the cookies will turn chewy if you transfer them into a container with lid when they're still warm. Also, I keep them in the fridge. They taste delicious right out of the fridge.

Enjoy!

Schaschlik a la Ute

Schaschlik is a dish of skewered meat, onions, and bell peppers with its origins in countries like Turkey, Hungary, Serbia and other Southeastern European countries. Depending on where you go, it'll be prepared with lamb, pork, or other meat (I prefer chicken because it cooks quickly), and the sauce usually includes a good amount of paprika, onions, and sometimes curry powder.

For busy (and lazy) people like myself, it can be a little tedious to skewer all the meat and peppers etc, so I usually create a dish, that is much easier... and quite frankly, tastes just as delicious as the original. I used to serve my Schaschlik with rice. Today I used cauliflower rice. And here's how it works...


Ingredients:

3 or 4 chicken breasts cut into bite sized pieces
1 medium sized red bell pepper cut into strips
1 medium sized green bell pepper cut into strips
2 dill pickles sliced
1 small onion sliced
5 or 6 strips of bacon cut into small pieces
1 can of diced tomatoes
2 splashes of gluten free Worcestershire Sauce (yes, there is such a thing)
salt, pepper, paprika, and curry to taste

1 head of cauliflower
expeller pressed coconut oil or butter
salt

Heat a cast iron pan until it is very hot. Add bacon and brown. Add onion and saute with bacon, then add bell peppers and pickles. Keep on stove at medium high heat for a few minutes, then remove mixture from pan.

Now add chicken (season with salt, pepper, and paprika) to the pan, turn heat up and cook like a stir fry from all sides for a few minutes, then add your bell pepper/bacon/onion mix. Turn heat to medium, and add your canned tomatoes to the mix. Season to taste. Just try how much curry powder you are comfortable with. Cook this mixture on low heat for about 10 minutes.

In the meantime, grate the cauliflower with a cheese grater or food processor to desired consistency. Mine comes close to a polenta consistency. Add the cauliflower to a pan with coconut oil or butter, and cook on medium high heat until reaching desired softness. Serve Schaschlik over "rice" and ENJOY!!